ASTRA on her reasons for leaving CS2: “Men, in general, don’t want to play with a woman on equal terms.”
French esports player Meylin-Joy “ASTRA” Champlio spoke in an interview with Parlons Esport about her reasons for leaving Counter-Strike 2, her experiences with misogyny, and shared her future plans for VALORANT.
On the reasons for leaving CS2
I got tired of the community, which is truly toxic. [Men] don’t want to see women in this game. Unfortunately, I’m not the only one: some of my teammates and, for example, Ana “ANa” Dumbrava have also stopped playing because of this. I understand the impact my decision will have on the scene; obviously, this is a heavy blow. Over the past six years, we’ve significantly raised the bar for women’s esports, but now it will drop sharply.
On Finding a Mixed Team
Finding a mixed team isn’t that easy; men generally don’t want to play with a woman on equal terms. When I was playing ranked matches every day, I started to lose my mind. The matches are awful because lower-ranked players think they know everything. The sexist comments came back, and that turned me off CS.
On the Switch to VALORANT
I played VALORANT during the beta test, but that’s it. I don’t expect to find an amazing team right away; before the next season starts, I’ll focus on improving myself. I’m a quick learner and already understand many of the concepts; I’m hard on myself and work hard, so I’m not worried about the learning curve. My goal is to make it to VCT: Game Changers, and that’s entirely achievable.
Earlier, Meilin-Joy “ASTRA” Champlio officially announced her switch to another discipline—VALORANT. The French esports player decided to leave the women’s Counter-Strike 2 scene, noting its gradual decline.
Photo by Rachel Mathews, ESL.
