T1 announce Academy roster for Challengers Korea 2026
Former T1 main-roster player DH returns to the academy setup as T1 rebuild for Challengers Korea 2026.
SOUTH KOREA – T1 have unveiled their Academy roster for the 2026 season, confirming the return of Park “Pkm” Kang-min and adding five new members to the lineup.
The new-look squad will be headlined by a mix of emerging talent and proven experience, with Kang “DH” Dong-ho returning to the academy setup after his stint on T1’s main roster, and Han "Gnadel" Gnadel joining from Gen.G Global Academy to take on the in-game leading duties.
Gnadel as one of the key additions after spending last season with Gen.G Global Academy. He joins T1 Academy as an in-game leader and initiator, bringing experience from a team that finished consistently in the top six across all three splits.
DH stands out as the biggest name on this year’s Academy squad, and the only player on the roster with tier-one experience. The 19-year-old was promoted to T1’s main team in May to replace Ko “Sylvan” Young-sub, helping the team finish fourth in VCT Pacific Stage 2 and qualify for VALORANT Champions Paris, where they bowed out in 9th-12th place.
Despite emerging as T1’s strongest individual performer in Stage 2, DH was moved back to the academy roster following the arrival of Byeon “Munchkin” Sang-beom from Gen.G.
“While taking a break, I recovered mentally and took care of some health issues. I consider it a period of reorganizing myself to climb back up to the top, ” DH says. “I know many of you have been waiting for me to step up. Hang tight. I’ll be joining the main stage before you know it.”
T1 also confirmed Ma “ValAnalysis” Hyun-sung as the head of the academy program, after he was first announced and appointed in November last year. During the 2025 season, ValAnalysis was part of Nongshim RedForce’s coaching staff, where the team recorded 5th-6th place finishes in Kickoff and Stage 2. Before that, he also gained coaching experience in China with Rare Atom and JDG Esports.
ValAnalysis also shared his thoughts on DH’s return to the academy setup of T1:
“He's a player who experienced the T1 main roster and has been to Champions. With that in mind I hope he keeps that sharp intuition, trusts his own judgment, and plays with the confidence to perform the way he wants as a Sentinel.”
Completing the roster are Park “DarK” Jung-hyeon, who is set to play controller, and Park “Satoru” Jeong-u, who will fill the flex role.
Pkm, entering his second season with T1 Academy, also spoke about his goals for 2026: “Since SLT (now VL) did so well and won Ascension to move up to Pacific, watching them gave me so much motivation. I plan to grind even harder this year. I’m going to make sure all the individual stats this season belong to me.”
T1 Academy enjoyed a strong 2025 campaign. After back-to-back third-place finishes in Stage 1 and Stage 2, the team closed out the year by winning Stage 3. However, despite earning a place at Ascension Pacific Bangkok on merit, T1 Academy were unable to compete due to their status as an academy team. Their slot was instead passed on to runners-up SLT Seongnam, who went on to win the event in Bangkok and secure promotion to VCT Pacific 2026.
From T1 Academy’s 2025 Challengers Korea roster, only Pkm remains. Kim “KDG” Dong-gun has been promoted to lead the main team, while Chae “GangPin” Jeong-mu has returned to Challengers Japan and signs with FENNEL. Kim “exa” Lee-hwan has moved back to North America and now plays for Shopify Rebellion Black.
Meanwhile, Kim “Efina” Nak-yeon and Yoo “Moothie” Seung-woo have yet to announce their next career moves.
T1 Academy are:
🇰🇷 Park “Pkm” Kang-min
🇰🇷 Kang “DH” Dong-ho
🇰🇷 Han "Gnadel" Gnadel
🇰🇷 Park “DarK” Jung-hyeon
🇰🇷 Park “Satoru” Jeong-u
🇰🇷 Ma “ValAnalysis” Hyun-sung
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