Virtus.Pro Dota Terminates Contract With Pure, Expresses SHOCK Over Severity of Punishment.
CIS esports organization Virtus.Pro has terminated its contract with carry player Ivan "Pure" Moskalenko. In its statement, the org also expressed shock at the severity of the punishment, and added that “disqualifying the whole team from a DPC tournament based on a drawing on a minimap by a single player sets up a whole new precedent.”
VP was recently disqualified from the Eastern European DPC Tour 2 Regional Playoffs, after Pure drew the letter ‘Z’ on the minimap during a match versus Mind Games. The letter ‘Z’ is reportedly the main symbol of public support for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Virtus.Pro makes official statement regarding the incident with Pure
Shortly after an official investigation was announced by BTS’ David “Godz” Parker, Pure issued a statement on the organization’s Twitter handle claiming that the drawing on the minimap was accidental. The incident lead to calls for bans from key figures in the Eastern European Dota scene including Ukranian commentator Vitalii Nikolaevich "v1lat" Volochai.
VP has since announced that it has terminated its contract with Pure while claiming that it had contacted Valve and the tournament organizer (BeyondTheSummit) right after the incident during game 1 versus Mind Games. The post also claims that the org’s CEO, Sergey Glamazda, personally talked to the players between games as part of its own investigation.
VP went on to express shock over the severity of this punishment, particularly with the fact that the entire team was disqualified “based on a drawing on a minimap by (a) single player”. Furthermore, the organization added that it has been consistently opposing any cases of inciting hatred in esports. The statement concluded with a mention that information about further roster changes will be announced separately.
Virtus.Pro's Dota 2 roster was competing under the 'Outsiders' banner in the Eastern European Dota 2 Pro Circuit 2021/22: Tour 2 Playoffs. The organization has been barred from competing in esports tournaments including the ESL Pro League and the GAMERS GALAXY: Dota 2 International Series Dubai 2022, under its own brand because of its apparent ties to the Russian government.
