alex: I feel like my captaincy skills are improving from tournament to tournament
Alexey “alex” Yarmoshchuk, captain of the B8 Esports CS2 roster, shared his thoughts in an interview at the IEM Cologne Major 2026 after advancing to the third stage of the tournament. He discussed his team’s mindset, his thoughts on sniper Danil “s1zzi” Vinnik’s play, and his development as an IGL.
On his feelings after advancing to the third stage
I’m a little tired, and I think that’s about it. I don’t have any particular emotions about the victory, since we knew from the start that we wouldn’t be facing the strongest opponent. It wasn’t difficult to win this match, but the team wasn’t able to secure its strongest maps.
On the team atmosphere
It’s normal for us to stay calm during the match and after winning rounds. When we first started competing on the Tier 1 scene, I told the guys that maybe we should be a little more active and loud, but that didn’t work. In the end, we realized that none of that gave us any special strength or advantage, so we just stayed calm guys.
About z1zzi
s1zzi doesn’t feel any particular pressure—to him, it feels like just another tournament. He doesn’t dwell on the fact that it’s a Major and an extremely important event; he just plays exactly the same way he always has. He’s confident, starts communicating more actively with every kill he gets, and this often has an extremely positive impact on our results.
On developing captaincy skills
I can feel my captaincy skills improving from tournament to tournament. When it comes to individual shooting skills, things are a bit more complicated, since I have to spend a lot of time training with a coach and developing tactics. This is especially noticeable now that he’s not around, and I have to pay even more attention to these processes. In part, the additional responsibility of keeping an eye on the team’s morale in the mentor’s absence has fallen on my shoulders, and on top of that, I analyze some maps on my own.
Yesterday, B8 Esports defeated BIG in the second stage of the IEM Cologne Major 2026 with a score of 2-1 in a best-of-3 series, securing their spot in the third stage of the championship, which begins tomorrow, June 11.
Photo — Stephanie Lindgren, BLAST.
