Alex “ALEX” McMeekin is formally stepping down from Team Vitality’s CS:GO roster after a 13-month run with the team. Statements from both Vitality and ALEX cite extensive traveling as the main reason for his departure.
ALEX stepping away from CS:GO
In a tweet put out by Vitality, the organization praises the former captain and in-game leader for his time with the squad. They also acknowledge the “very demanding lifestyle” that comes with being a pro CS:GO player and that it was no longer working for ALEX.
Official statement regarding our CS:GO team. pic.twitter.com/ioAGqfx86M
— Team Vitality (@TeamVitality) March 4, 2020
Meanwhile, ALEX put out a TwitLonger that explains the situation from his own perspective. He acknowledged recent rumors of him leaving as being true and elaborated on his struggles with the travel schedule.
Last year we travelled 36 weeks of the year and by July I was struggling to keep up with the intense travelling schedule, coming into this year we wanted to cut that down to 22 weeks (an extra 2.5 months at home). However the accelerated professionalization of the CS:GO scene, through ESL pro tour & Blast Premier arrivals, changed the ecosystem and we could no longer get down to anywhere near the amount of weeks discussed earlier.
According to ALEX, the only logical decision was to step back from Vitality before becoming too tired to put the work in. Interestingly, ALEX also notes that he offered to stay with Vitality until they found a suitable replacement. Despite the offer, the player claims Vitality opted to begin their search immediately, to which he wished them the best.
During ALEX’s time with Vitality, the team took first at EPICENTER 2019. They also claimed first at the Esports Championship Series Season 7 Finals. He further led the team to place second at ESL One: Cologne 2019 and DreamHack Masters Malmö 2019.
It is unclear whether ALEX will return to competitive CS:GO down the road. The player ended his TwitLonger post saying he’s not sure what the future holds, and he thanked everyone who’s supported him.
As for Vitality, the team is now on the hunt for ALEX’s replacement. In the organization’s statement, they say no decision has yet been made regarding the team’s in-game leading role.
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