Puppey on former teammates: “People like LighTofHeaveN were also very good at coming up with strategies.”
PARIVISION coach Clement “Puppey” Ivanov spoke about his former teammates in an interview with the club’s YouTube channel and explained how he chose the fifth position in his career.
On role models in Dota
No, I didn’t have anyone. I didn’t have an [idol]. No, of course, there were some players who played with me. To me, they were icons, so to speak. There was this French guy named SoyCD—he really understood how to play Dota. People like LighTofHeaveN were also really good at creating plays. That’s close to it, I’d say.
On choosing the fifth position in my career
When I played Dota, there weren’t really any set positions. There was just the guy who farmed the most, but his hero could be random: he could do it on Pudge, or he could do it on Crystal Maiden. I played every position, and around the time Dota 2 was starting, I began to realize that it’s easier to be the captain if you’re in position 5. That’s why I play position 5.
On Viewers’ Perception of Supports
Usually, the thing is that supports farm less; they can’t carry the game, and they don’t have as many highlights. But I think things have changed a bit now—supports get a lot of respect these days.
On advice for supports
If they know there’s a ward somewhere, just let it be there. Because sometimes people might go there to try to kill that ward—and end up dying. Just ignore it. [Talk your team out of] fighting over it or anything like that.
It’s a typical support thing: “There’s a ward there, we have to go kill it!” If there’s a ward there—let it be. Sometimes it even happens that you place a Sentry Ward, see a ward—just back off. You just saw it, and for you, it’s dangerous [Dangerous. — Ed.]. If you feel like it’s dangerous, just walk away. But only high-skill players know how to do that. I think low-skill players need to understand this now, too—that you can’t do that.
Earlier, Puppey said that the team plans to take a break before the start of the year’s major tournaments. First, the team will compete in the qualifiers for The International 2026, and in July, they’ll compete at the Esports World Cup 2026 in Paris.
Photo — Valve.
