A World Champion takes his final bow.
Former FPX top laner and 2019 World Champion Kim “GimGoon” Han-Saem has retired from professional LoL play.
The former World Champion took to Weibo, a Chinese social media platform to announce his retirement, accompanied by a figurine and a framed FPX jersey.
“After thinking about it for a long time, I decided to retire. After playing for so long in the profession, I have always had your support, teammates, and friends. I have no regrets in my career. Thank you FunPlus Phoenix for the gift.” He stated in the Weibo post.
GimGoon retires from LoL a champion
The Korean top laner has played for a bevy of various teams, such as Xenics Storm in the OGN, Energy Pacemaker. All and Game Talents, the latter two are LPL teams, before finding a home with FunPlus Phoenix in 2018.
A six-year veteran in League of Legends, GimGoon is best known for winning the 2019 LoL World Championship with FunPlus Phoenix. The 1st seeded LPL team defeated G2 Esports in the 2019 Worlds Finals in Paris, France, where GimGoon’s Gangplank only had one death to his name throughout the entire finals.
Following the 2019 LoL World Championship, the team retained the same roster and added DRX top laner Khan. They featured a six-man roster. Unfortunately, the enhanced lineup was a failure.GimGoon’s performance saw a drastic dip in quality in 2020. And after a third-place finish in the 2020 LPL Spring Split, FPX went downhill, failing to qualify for Worlds 2020.
Throughout 2021, GimGoon spent a year away from League of Legends streaming on Doyou as he searched for starting LPL positions. And as the 2021 year concludes, GimGoon’s search has been unsuccessful as he retires from League of Legends.
What is next for GimGoon?
In the official statement, there isn't much information about GimGoon’s future in League of Legends. Some speculate that he may serve his mandatory Korean Military Service while others believe he may return to streaming.
A storied career starting as a bottom-tier toplaner, GimGoon’s eventual rise to become a World Champion will forever be etched into history as a great comeback story.
For now, FPX will be holding a retirement ceremony on December 28th to honor their former top laner.
Until then, stay tuned to Esports.gg for the latest League of Legends news and updates.