The player Kim “Doinb” Tae-sang (22) won the LoL Worlds 2019 with his team. He had announced his retirement as a professional player in League of Legends a year earlier. But his wife Li “Umi” Youzi was able to change his mind.
This is how Doinb’s career went up to 2018:
- Doinb made a name for himself as a streamer and strong solo player in South Korea
- Then in 2015 he hopefully started a professional career in China – Many teams wanted him, as ESPN says, but he consciously went to the second league to learn “from the ground up” there
- He made a name for himself as a strong player and successful professional – But he was often viewed strangely due to his unconventional style in LoL because he didn’t stay in the mid lane but always roamed
- Additionally, an internal dispute, in which Doinb was involved, caused a scandal and tarnished his reputation in April 2016
Self-doubt and health issues
Where was Doinb a year ago? The mid laner announced his retirement in October 2018. He had already finished his career as a LoL professional. In September 2018, he had declared himself inactive with his team “Rogue Warrior”.
He cited health reasons for his retirement. Doinb simply didn’t want to continue anymore, as he told ESPN in an interview. He felt he hadn’t achieved anything significant in his career. The mid laner doubted himself, and his body didn’t feel good anymore.
Although some organizations wanted to sign him, Doinb told his team he didn’t want to be traded anymore. He was now planning a career as a streamer.
But a year later, everything turned out differently than planned. In December 2018, the Chinese team FunPlus Phoenix suddenly announced that they had signed Doinb as their new mid laner.
2019 will be the year of Doinb in LoL
This is where Doinb stands now: The move to FunPlus Phoenix was not a retirement home. The team restructured around Doinb and signed players who fit the quirky playing style of the “Super Carry”.
Doinb played an extremely strong season with FunPlus Phoenix:
- They won the league 13-2,
- Then became champions in the playoffs against RNG with star player Uzi
- And they have now won the LoL World Championship 2019 – in the final they were so overwhelmingly superior that ADC Lwx didn’t die a single time, a new record
The Worlds are the crown of League of Legends. One cannot win more in LoL.
Doinb was undoubtedly one of the stars of the tournament. With his unusual, roaming play style from the mid lane, he shaped the LoL Worlds 2019.
This is how Doinb almost single-handedly won the quarter-finals against Fnatic. With aggressive champions like Ryze, he achieved fantastic kill rates in the matches.
In the final against G2 Esports, however, he played a different role with “tanky” champions like Nautilus or Galio and was able to continuously set up his teammates.
It was exactly this “strange champion pool” and roaming play style, for which he was often criticized, that now made Doinb the star of the LoL Worlds 2019.
Doinb’s wife becomes the secret star of the LoL Worlds
What role does his wife play? Doinb is married to Li “Umi” Youzi. She also comes from the eSports scene. Umi was previously a caster for the popular online game “Dungeon Fighter Online” in China.
Doinb proposed to her at a FunPlus Phoenix event.
Umi caught the eyes of the fans repeatedly during the LoL World Championship and became a star herself at the World Championship. She was always by her husband’s side in the halls of Europe and often one of the few who supported the Chinese among a sea of cheering EU fans.
Doinb particularly thanks his wife (via dexerto). He says:
Before this year, I had thought about quitting, but she told me to believe in myself and to give it one last try. I couldn’t have won this trophy without her.
At the same time, he also apologizes to his wife (via inven): Even when the team takes breaks, he doesn’t go home. And when he does go home, he plays ranked all the time.
At the moment, Doinb is thinking again about ending his career. Let’s see what his wife says about it.
The title image shows Li “Umi” Youzi after FunPlus Phoenix’s victory in the quarter-finals. It is by Michael Konkol on behalf of Riot Games.
