BLAST Issues Apology to Counter-Strike Pro for Misinterpreting Middle Finger Gesture

BLAST Issues Apology to Counter-Strike Pro for Misinterpreting Middle Finger Gesture

Recently, BLAST has publicly apologized to Counter-Strike player Shahar ‘flameZ’ Shushan due to a misunderstanding that occurred during the BLAST Bounty Season 1 tournament. The tournament organizer faced backlash after allegedly misinterpreting flameZ’s actions.

During a match against Eternal Fire, flameZ was captured on camera making an obscene gesture, which was later clarified by BLAST to be misrepresented. The organization emphasized that the gesture was not directed at any players from Eternal Fire.

In their official response, BLAST expressed regret for the incident and the resulting “onslaught of abusive messages” directed at flameZ online.

Official Statement from BLAST

On January 25, BLAST shared their statement on Twitter/X explaining, “Yesterday there was an incident involving Vitality player, flameZ, where a middle finger gesture was caught on camera.”

They further clarified, “This moment occurred in an out-of-context interaction between the player and the camera crew, which should not have been aired as it took place before the match started. We want to clarify that the gesture was not aimed at any opponent or fellow competitor.”

BLAST emphasized, “We deeply regret that this has led to a hoard of abusive messages being directed at the player online. We sincerely apologize for the negative attention it has caused and we do not condone any abuse towards any player in any shape or form.”

Incident Overview

The incident unfolded while Team Vitality was lagging 0-4 in the first map of Anubis. In a significant moment, flameZ was given the only rifle, which he used to achieve a triple-kill, aiding Vitality in winning their first round of the match.

Following this decisive round, Eternal Fire called for a timeout. During this intermission, BLAST’s production team broadcasted footage from the previous round, which included flameZ appearing to make the offensive gesture.

After the match concluded, flameZ took to Twitter/X to elaborate on the incident, asserting that his gesture was not directed at Eternal Fire. He explained, “Just to clarify regarding the middle finger, I was joking with the cameraman and pointed the middle finger at him. BLAST took it from a different angle and posted it.”

Moreover, Venaxie, the photographer present, confirmed that the footage was taken “before the game had even started, ” indicating that the gesture was unrelated to the ongoing match.

Commenting on the situation, Milan ‘Striker’ Švejda, HLTV Editor-in-Chief, remarked, “BLAST rolling this mid-map when it’s from pre-game and not directed at the other team is pretty damn rough.”

As of now, BLAST has addressed the controversy with their official statement, and flameZ has not issued any further comments on the matter.

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