Korea cruise past China to reach League of Legends final

Korea’s all-star League of Legends (LoL) team defeated China 2-0 in the semifinal at the Hangzhou Asian Games held at China Hangzhou Esports Centre FOP Area in Hangzhou, China on Thursday, reaching the final and guaranteeing either a gold or silver medal.

This year’s Asiad features Esports as a medal event for the first time in history, having debuted as a demonstration sport in 2018.

Korea make short work of Saudi Arabia to reach LoL semifinals

Team Korea is led by Korean star 27-year-old Lee Sang-hyeok, known by fans as “Faker,” who recently recovered from a right arm injury that hindered his play. Faker, already a household name in Korea, is perhaps the biggest figure in global gaming, the emerging sport's Lionel Messi, Novak Djokovic and Tom Brady all rolled into one.

But Faker has been absent from both the semifinal and quarterfinal due to sickness. Instead, the baton was carried by his teammates Choi Woo-je, Seo Jin-hyeok, Park Jae-hyeok, Ryu Min-seok and Jung Ji-hun.

In LoL, which is one of the world’s fastest-growing sports with around 150 million monthly players, two teams of five battle it out to defend their half of the game map.

Winning gold will be crucial for Team Korea, as it would give them exemption from mandatory military service that all able-bodied Korean men between the age of 18 to 35 must complete.

The LoL final will take place at the same venue on Friday at 7 p.m., or 8 p.m. Korea time.

Korea is competing in four Esports games this year: LoL, EA Sports FC Online, Street Fighter V: Champion Edition and Peacekeeper Elite.

BY PAIK JI-HWAN AND MARY YANG [paik.jihwan@joongang.co.kr]