The famous street fighter professional Daigo Umahara is 39 years old, a considerable age for an e-athlete. He has once again shown what he is still capable of.
Who is it about? The Japanese Daigo “The Beast” Umahara is well known to insiders of the scene. He is one of the best street fighter players and at 39 one of the oldest e-sport professionals.
What happened? Recently, he showed again what he is capable of. He participated in a street fighter tournament, the Capcom Pro Tour Season Finals, and won. However, he was significantly impaired as he had broken his finger prior to the tournament.
“It will be okay soon”
This is what happened in the tournament: He still participated in the Season Finals and faced Kanamori “Gachikun” Tsunehiro in the final. Despite the injury, Diago won the match decisively with 4-1. You can watch the complete fight on Youtube.
What did the professional say about it? Before the tournament, Diago spoke with his fans during a stream and casually mentioned that he had broken his finger.
In the video, you can watch the translation from FGC Translated:
This probably happened during a fall. For Daigo, this apparently was no big deal: It only hurts while playing when he makes a forward jump. He does not take painkillers because “it’s not that bad”.
However, this is likely classic understatement, as it comes down to precise and quick input in street fighter to play at a high level.
After the victory, one might think that Daigo would take a break to recover his finger. But he simply keeps playing and streamed for his viewers the next day.
Once again, “The Beast” has shown that with sheer willpower, one can still be one of the best in the field, even when one has already reached an above-average age. Especially since e-athletes, according to a study, experience just as much stress as football players. A certain degree of pain resistance can also be beneficial.
What do you think of the performance? Do you believe that age is not as important in e-sports? Let us know in the comments.
Why e-athletes like Daigo can be motivating is explained in our special: 39-Year-Old Wins Tournament in Street Fighter 5, gives us old men hope
