Chr1zN on HEROIC’s elimination from the IEM Cologne Major 2026: “We just crumble under pressure”

HEROIC captain Kristoffer “Chr1zN” Storgård commented on the team’s elimination from the tournament in an interview at the IEM Cologne Major 2026, discussed the reasons for their poor performance, and addressed the fans.
On the reasons for the elimination
This is tough. Of course, it’s a very tense moment and a difficult situation to be in. So mistakes in the game, naturally, happen. But I feel like we’re just not performing at the level we know we’re capable of. I think we’re just cracking under the pressure. It seems to me that we… yeah, we’re just not following through on what we plan. In some rounds we had good opportunities, but we just… yeah, we didn’t execute them properly.
On plans after the elimination
To be honest, I don’t know right now. I suppose we’ll just head to the next tournament we have. Of course, this last part of the season didn’t turn out at all the way it was supposed to, and it’s far from an acceptable level. So, I think we’ll find ourselves in a difficult position, and quite deservedly so. But yeah, it’s tough. However, we’ll have to move on from this.
About the fans
I just want to apologize to everyone who rooted for us. Yes, this was far from acceptable, as has been the case for quite some time now. So yes, I’m sorry. I hope we’ll perform better in the future.
Earlier, during the first stage of the IEM Cologne Major 2026, HEROIC lost to Team Liquid 0-2 in a knockout match. Christoffer “Chr1zN” Storgård’s team finished the tournament in 28th–30th place, failing to secure any prize money.
Photo by Stephanie Lindgren, BLAST.


