Team Aster Apologizes for LaNm’s Outburst About TI10 Arrangements

An official apology has been issued by Team Aster to PGL via its Weibo account for the complaints that its support player, Zhang "LaNm" Zhicheng made a day ago. Team Aster disclosed that they signed a contract with PGL before arriving in Romania, which involved the latter only providing assistance with the accommodation and training facilities. This contract, however, was unknown to LaNm, leading to the misunderstanding that resulted in his outburst. In acknowledging that this outburst affected PGL's reputation, the Chinese team offered an apology. The statement also said that all those members involved in the incident had been subjected to stringent punishment.

A day earlier, through now-deleted posts, LaNm had criticized PGL for not providing adequate safety precautions and basic amenities at the team's bootcamp in Bucharest, Romania - the host venue for The International 10 (TI10).

Team Aster issues an apology to PGL for LaNm’s complaints on Weibo

Team Aster explained that after consulting with PGL, they arrived in Romania on 15th Sept 2021 for training. There was an agreement that PGL would help organize the travel, hotel, and training facilities for the team, while all costs would be borne by Team Aster itself.

LaNm was unaware of this contract, however. This together with the fact that several team members contracted the virus led to his posting a series of posts on his Weibo account, in which he criticized PGL for the subpar bootcamp facilities in Bucharest.

Despite the fact that LaNm later deleted most of these posts, Team Aster acknowledged that PGL was the subject of unnecessary public pressure and hence apologized for it.

Three members of Team Aster’s Dota 2 roster, as well as two members of their staff, had tested positive for the virus a day ago. Later in the day, LaNm, one of the two roster members not infected with the virus, lashed out at PGL because he said there was no food or water at the bootcamp. There was also no prior testing and the players were only tested after they reported symptoms, he added. Afterward, he deleted almost all of these posts and said that medications had been arranged for the infected and that each individual was being self-isolated.

Later, Invictus Gaming's offlaner, Thiay "JT-" Jun Wen, also tested positive for the virus.

All five Chinese teams that will participate in TI10 in Bucharest, Romania, are currently bootcamping in the same hotel. TI10 is scheduled to take place from 7th-17th Oct 2021, and it is currently unknown whether this virus scare poses any threats to it.