Making a return to the world stage in Pokémon UNITE is none other than Tay “Ice” Leong Jie, and he’s hungry to win it all.

There are only but a few participants that reach the highest point of an esports circuit, and the 24-year-old is one of them. This will also be the second year they will be competing at Worlds with the Orangutan jersey.

Ice’s history with Orangutan and the World Championships

Previously, Ice was playing under the team of No Lucario, later acquired by OG for the Pokémon UNITE World Championship 2022. In January 2023, No Lucario and OG parted ways, which led the player to once again represent themselves.

After the conclusion of the Pokémon UNITE Asia Champions League on March 2023, OG acquired a new roster, known at the time as Hi5.

Later on, Ice eventually left No Lucario and was picked up once again by OG, who then went on to qualifying for the Pokémon UNITE World Championship.

The Pokémon UNITE World Championship Experience

As someone who was integrated into the new roster, Ice felt that they needed a lot of time to adjust with the new team that they were playing with.

“As I was only included a week before the competition, there was a lack of time for me to be fully integrated. Though the synergy is there, it’s not where I want it to be. I want our synergy to be flawless.”

Despite that, they didn’t have any issues adjusting to the new roster as their playstyle was similar. Earlier this year, they even subbed in for Hi5 when the team participated in the Winter Tournament.

While Hi5’s roster under OG has had LAN experiences, this will be their first World Championship together, and Ice is the only one with prior experience.

“I used to play a lot of games competitively before Pokémon UNITE came out and had multiple LAN experiences prior, so hopefully I can use my accumulated experiences to help my teammates calm down should the situation becomes too tense. That’s my goal.”

The team is very confident in themselves going into the Pokémon UNITE World Championships. Time will tell if Ice is the team’s key to success at this year’s World Championships.

“I’d like to thank all our fans that supported me and OG; without them, we wouldn’t be able to play with such ease. To all my rivals, look out, because this time we’re prepared and everyone is coming.”

You can keep up with Ice’s journey by following their Twitter or Orangutan’s road to Worlds by following their socials on Twitter, Instagram, or Facebook.

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