Sophomore wins computer gaming world championship

An FIU sophomore who plays video games professionally captured a world gaming title last month in Paris at the Electronic Sports World Cup 2005 (ESWC).

Danny Montaner, 18, known as “fRoD” to the gaming world, took home one-fifth of the $40,000 first prize he and four teammates won. The ESWC championship was held from July 6-10 and gave professional computer gamers from more than 50 countries a chance to show off their skills.

Montaner, whose mother Miriam Tamargo-Diaz works in the FIU Foundation, has been playing Counter-Strike from the comfort of his home PC for five years. For an entire year, he has been one of five members from across the nation who make up the “compLexity clan,” a professional computer game team owned by Jason Lake, a real estate lawyer from Atlanta.

“A lot of people play this game, but only some take it seriously,” said Montaner. “I didn’t either until I realized that people actually get paid to play. It’s beneficial to be 18 and get a salary to play a game I love and to travel around the world.”

This is not the average 9-to-5 desk job. The players sign contracts, receive a monthly salary and travel around the world, all expenses paid, to compete. If they win, the prize money is an added income. Lake is the boss. Corporate sponsors financially support the organization.

Montaner takes his job seriously and says the key is practice. “Wins aren’t just given to you, you need to earn them, and the only way to earn them is by practicing and being dedicated.”

CompLexity went to the ESWC Qualifier in New York in May. As first-place winners, they went on to the ESWC in Paris as the official team representing the United States. It is the first time a U.S. team has won the cup, and it was Montaner’s first time at the championship.

He has been to France, China, Japan, Spain, Texas, California, New York and Illinois for gaming competitions and will visit Germany later this month for the E-Sports Awards.

-- Adriana Pereira

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