Nikolai dev1ce Ridtz – thirteenth and fifteenth MVP Major
If we start talking about the best players in CS:GO, there are several cyber athletes who are bound to be mentioned in such a conversation, as their names, as they say, are written in history. Among those players would definitely be Alexander s1mple Kostylev and Nikolai dev1ce Ridtz, who many connoisseurs and experts consider to be the best sniper. Over the past few months the eSports star has been going through a bit of a rough patch in his life and many of his fans are eagerly awaiting his return and hope that their idol will long continue to delight them with at least the same level of play that he enthused the audience with in the Astralis.
Nikolaj Ridtz was born on 8 September 1995 in Vejle, Denmark. Already in his childhood he decided on his profession, when he wanted to be a professional sportsman. True, at first the question was not about eSports. Nikolai was very seriously engaged in badminton and was preparing for a serious and long professional career in this sport. But everything changed after a serious leg injury, as a result of which he had to give up on his long-time dream and seriously adjust his plans for life. Ridtz has also been interested in computer games since childhood, but as an amateur without ever thinking of playing professionally. As an amateur, he took part in his first CS:GO tournaments.
Nick started his career with Copenhagen Wolves, then played for CPH Wolves, Dignitas and TSM. With the latter, he achieved his first major success and received his first recognition. By the time of his move to Astralis, Nikolai Ridtz had the status of a winner of 5 tournaments and a very promising player. But it was only at Astralis that he was able to achieve success at the highest level. Soon after Ridtz, Lucas Rossander and Emil Reif joined the team. After their first major victory in Atlanta, they began a phenomenal era of Astralis’ triumphal procession, winning so many tournaments in a row that the success remains the all-time record in their respective eSports disciplines.
The FACEIT Major London 2018 was a real star for Nikolai Ridtz. The athlete participated in this tournament after a year-long break, caused by a serious illness. But he was able to fully recover for the tournament and contributed greatly to his team’s victory over Natus Vincere, Astralis’ main opponent. The two teams faced off twice in this major, in the tournament’s opening game and in the finals. In the first meeting Astralis snatched victory with great difficulty, finishing the match with a score of 16:14. But in the final, the Danes dominated the entire game and left no chance for their opponent in any round.
Dev1ce also made a huge contribution to his team’s victory at the StraLadder Major Berlin 2019. He arrived at the tournament already in undisputed status as a cyber sports star. In 2018 alone, the player was named MVP seven times. Team Astralis won convincingly, without giving their opponents a single chance, and Nikolai Ridtz showed a phenomenal result, finishing the major with a statistic of 1.26.
Astralis’ winning streak came to an end in 2020, when the coronavirus forced most tournaments to be either cancelled or moved online. The team, although somewhat down in the rankings, did not fall to the underdogs. Things might have been much better if internal conflicts had not arisen within the team. A chain of circumstances led to Nikolaj Ridtz moving to Ninjas in Pyjamas. His decision was influenced by several factors, but above all a desire to be with his girlfriend, a Swedish citizen. Ridtz has only won one tournament with the Swedish team, IEM Fall. Then the life of the legendary player, winner of 30 top honours, including 19 MVPs, began a dark streak.
The parting with his beloved woman seriously undermined the psychological state of Nikolai Ridtz. He announced the suspension in his career, but noted that he is not going to end it yet, but only takes time out, the end of which the fans of the CS:GO star are looking forward to.
