Anatoly “boolk” Ivanov joins Virtus.pro as Dota 2 roster coach.
Sergey Glamazda, Virtus.pro CEO: “Our search for a coach has been a really tough process. At first, we determined our weaknesses, the ones that only someone from outside could help us with. Playing on LANs takes its toll, both physical and mental-wise, and it’s difficult to deal with it on your own. That’s why we hired our Sports Director Ivan Lazarev, a man with tons of experience in sports who can manage morale, discipline, and health matters for the team.
Then we came up with criteria for our coach. What we needed:
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Actual coaching experience, not just a good ex-pro player;
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A person who is eager for self-improvement and always in search of new ways to make a teamwork;
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Being passionate about their job and ready to be with the team almost 24/7 in the following months;
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A notion about the game and readiness to take responsibility for the result;
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Someone who will take care of the drafts and let our captain focus on his own performance.
In my personal opinion, Tolya has grown immensely over the last 18 months, both as a person and a coach. The players backed the idea of recruiting him, which only makes me more confident in this decision. We chose him not for his past achievements, but rather because of what he can give the team in the present.
Of course, we are not going to put all the weight on our coach’s shoulders. Our players, Sports Director, and I will do everything in our power to make sure the team will perform at the top of its abilities. We all need a breath of fresh air before TI”. Anatoly has already begun working with the team. You will see our squad in action on the 21st of August in ESL One Fall 2021.