How James BanKs avoided a \u201cdark\u201d path because of esports CS:GO caster James \u2018BanKs\u2019 explained how esports was his saving grace in an exclusive interview with Dexerto. When NAVI won PGL Stockholm 2021, it wasn\u2019t just superstar s1mple celebrating the achievement. Long after the event was over and the last fans had exited the venue, BanKs laid on the floor of the stage and thought to himself, \u201cI\u2019ve done it!\u201d BanKs had just undergone the toughest challenge of his life \u2013 losing his fianc\u00e9e while working in Stockholm. Now, he says the \u201cgame kept me focused on my love and passion and kept me out of a dark place during a dark time.\u201d Esports holds a special place in BanKs\u2018 heart, and his ties run much deeper than the average fan or professional player. He shared the story of his journey in esports and how he always knew it was his calling in life. Esports was an escape BanKs grew up in a low-income family in London\u2019s public housing system. He admitted, \u201cI had an amazing family, but I just took a few wrong turns.\u201d He was diagnosed with diabetes at a young age; in some ways, the diagnosis served as a blessing in disguise. He was forced to stay home for treatment, and this allowed him to discover CS 1.5. \u201cCounter-Strike has been the most consistent thing in my life, and I am so thankful for it. Never did I imagine it would be more than just playing a game.\u201d In 2003, at age 13, BanKs watched SK Sweden, which ignited his passion for esports LAN tournaments. He also competed in his first live event that same year with friends. He didn\u2019t win a single match, but \u201cI kept going through, never give up, guys!\u201d Five years later and studying in college, BanKs didn\u2019t have time to play on a CS 1.6 team, so he transitioned to Virtua Fighter 5. Playing a one-on-one game allowed him to balance school and esports simultaneously. Religious play and practice culminated in a silver medal at the UK qualifiers. \u201cMy goal was always to stay in esports and never stop, no matter what role it was.\u201d BanKs finally gets his big break in CS:GO BanKs\u2019 perseverance finally paid off in 2014 when he was invited to be an interviewer with Gfinity at G3. Conducting interviews on YouTube helped him prepare for the moment, and despite being \u201cincredibly nervous,\u201d he credited Richard Lewis, Duncan \u2018Thorin\u2019 Shields, and Scott \u2018SirScoots\u2019 Smith for helping him. Being an avid esports fan and building relationships helped BanKs into the position he is in today. \u201cI try to be as compassionate and empathetic as possible with all players and follow their mood while understanding where I can push things and where I should hold back.\u201d CS:GO draws in massive crowds, and BanKs lives for meeting fans and people who love the game as much as him. PGL Antwerp 2022 broke the game\u2019s attendance record, hosting over 20,000 passionate fans, and BanKs was in the midst of it all, soaking everything in. \u201cThe more they give, the more I feel energized. It is a really hard feeling to explain, but it is where I feel I do my best work, it is where I feel my happiest.\u201d \u201cWhere I feel my happiest\u201d For BanKs, esports is more than a sweet escape or an important hobby. In a tragic turn of events, the caster lost his fianc\u00e9e when he was working PGL Stockholm 2021. BanKs was devastated, but he wasn\u2019t alone. He describes that event as a \u201cbeautiful distraction\u201d as community members rallied around him after suffering such a great loss. \u201cIt was the best event and the hardest event for me. My favorite team NAVI won, finally, after their dedication and commitment to CS: GO, they won a major, and my friend S1mple, the greatest player of all time, achieved his dream.\u201d s1mple spent time with BanKs throughout PGL Stockholm and, after lifting up the championship trophy, says the pro \u201cgave me his Major winning mouse that I will cherish forever.\u201d As BanKs laid on the Stockholm stage and felt waves of emotion pour over him, the experience was confirmation of his love and passion for esports. Being on stage and absorbing the energy of a crowd is where BanKs feels happiest, and hardships faced at several stages of life led him to the conclusion that esports \u201cwas a way out of everything bad.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
How James BanKs avoided a \u201cdark\u201d path because of esports CS:GO caster James \u2018BanKs\u2019 explained how esports was his saving grace in an exclusive interview with Dexerto. When NAVI won PGL Stockholm 2021, it wasn\u2019t just superstar s1mple celebrating the achievement. Long after the event was over and the last fans had exited the venue, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-66663","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dejan.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/66663","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dejan.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dejan.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dejan.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dejan.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=66663"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/dejan.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/66663\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dejan.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=66663"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dejan.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=66663"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dejan.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=66663"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}