This article was originally published on GameSpot's sister site onGamers.com, which was dedicated to esports coverage.
LucifroN, who last year was heralded as one of the undisputedly best non-Korean SC2 players, has left the esport behind him for now as he choses to pursue his studies in favor of continuing his career in the professional Starcraft scene.
@Steisjo @Rif_kingz @regorsnas_APSC2 @SCenfu If he wants to come back or not is up to him, but if he does, he's back in the red jersey.
— mouzWake (@mouzWake) January 10, 2014
The young Spaniard's entry in to esports came in the shape of competitive Warcraft 3, where he was seen as a prodigy after reaching the BlizzCon 2008 grand finals. Following his great success in the franchise, his transition to SC2 was one made up of huge expectations from the side of the community, and unfortunately his WC3 self had not made the switch of titles in the smoothest manner. This became all the more evident as a number of tournament ventures in 2010 went awry, the most traumatic being his DreamHack Winter 2010 run which ended in the group stage of the tournament after being eliminated by the controversial Lars 'ActionJesuz' Krøjmand, who six-pooled the terran out of the tournament.
Following the disappointing sequence of events that had transpired at DreamHack Winter, LucifroN was nowhere to be found for almost two years until the day it became known that he and his little brother Juan 'VortiX' Moreno Durán had joined the Spanish esports organisation Karont3 eSports. With Karont3, the brothers performed incredibly well throughout the rest of 2012 as they placed 2nd and 3rd respectively at the WCS EU Grand Finals, and toured the world together, attending events such as IPL 5, IEM Singapore and the BWC Grand Finals.
This would be the most successful period in the terran's remaining career. Even though he qualified for two WCS EU Premier league seasons in a row, he was never able to translate his performances in to enough to reach either season's finals. With lack of results in individual tournaments, his competitive drive apparently died down and he lost his motivation to compete. mousesports management are leaving their arms open if Durán ever wishes to return to the pro-scene.
Image Source: wcs.battle.net, ign.es, teamliquid.net