by Monte’s CS:GO coach Sergey “lmbt” Bezhanov announced on Friday that he would not attend the BLAST.tv Paris Major 2023 with the squad due to Ukraine’s strict regulations.
LMBT explained the reasons behind his absence at the upcoming tournament on his Telegram channel. According to the Ukrainian coach, despite the organisation’s efforts to evade it, he had to adhere to the new laws of his home country.
Due to the ongoing war between Ukraine and Russia, men between the ages of 18 and 60 were prohibited from leaving the country. People previously acquired permission to leave the country, but since stricter laws were introduced, this has been significantly more difficult to obtain.
“We did everything we could, but I’m definitely not going to the Major with the team because the war dictates its own laws, and the new rules make it impossible. But the guys are as ready as possible, and I’m sure of them,” LMBT said.
“It’s going to be a weird feeling to watch my team compete at Major from the studio, but I really have a lot of faith in the guys. You all have to give them a lot of support.”
This leaves Monte without a coach going into the BLAST.tv Paris Major. The team recorded an impressive run in the Europe RMR B tournament, where they finished in fourth place with only one loss.
Monte reached a 3-1 record after winning against teams like FORZE, ENCE, and Cloud9. Heroic was their only loss in the group stage, following another defeat in the Legends Stage decider by Team Vitality.
Monte has recorded even more victories since the RMR, winning the CCT West Europe Series 3. They also recorded a runner-up place at the CCT Central Europe Series 6.
The CS:GO lineup is set to begin their run in the tournament’s Challengers stage on Monday. They will face off against one of the event’s favourites, FaZe, in a best-of-one format.
Monte is a $51.00 shot to win the Blast.tv Paris Major, with the favourites being G2 Esports ($4.00) at the top esports betting sites.
