The South Korean coach had been with the organization for ten months.
INDONESIA – Alter Ego have announced that Kang “TRY” Tae-wook will no longer be the team’s coach, a position he held for over ten months after being announced in May 2022. The announcement came right after VCL Indonesia Split 1, in which Alter Ego finished 5-6th, just one place below the Split 2 qualification zone.
Having previously worked with Cloud9 Korea and China’s ShanXi Gaming, the 29-year-old coach joined Alter Ego in mid-May 2022 to provide the team with an extra strategic edge for the second stage of VCT. This decision was made following the departure of Andi “Sleepy” Bangsawan at the end of 2021, and the team played the first stage of VCT Indonesia without a coach.
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TRY attended six events during his tenure, and Alter Ego’s performance peaked one month after his appointment, reaching the semi-finals of the 2022 VCT APAC Stage 2 Challengers. “Coach TRY, he’s a funny guy, kinda cheesy. And he fits well with the rest of the gang. He also brings a lot to the team’s performance, since he’s got a lot of experience in the esports scene, so he could tell what the enemy was thinking.” former Alter Ego player Axel “huliolio” Julio said in an interview.
However, the team’s performance took a downturn afterward, leading to a joint 7-8th place finish in the VCT APAC Last Chance Qualifier and a lackluster OFF//SEASON run.
This announcement comes at a challenging moment for Alter Ego, who were considered one of the favorites to reach the top four of VCL Indonesia Split 1 but were knocked out early, finishing in 5-6th place without winning any series during the playoff stage against ARF Team and Dewa United. The Adrian “adrnking” Setiawan-led side will be looking to bounce back in the upcoming VCL Indonesia Split 2, where they will start their journey from the open qualifier on Saturday, March 18.
As of now, TRY has not made any statement regarding his plans to pursue another coaching position, as well as Alter Ego who have not released any information regarding the future of their coaching staff.
With his departure, Alter Ego have:
- 🇮🇩 Jonathan “naTz” Adiputra
- 🇮🇩 Bryan “Gemma” Setiawan
- 🇮🇩 Delbert “deLb” Tanoto
- 🇮🇩 Adrian “adrnking” Setiawan
- 🇮🇩 Alehandro “Nakya” Simanjorang
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Cover photo courtesy of Alter Ego
