Another new face is making his debut in the LCS for the start of the 2023 Spring Split, only a few months after he was brought into the North American Challengers League.
Golden Guardians’ lineup for the first week of the Spring Split includes Golden Guardians Challengers mid laner Young Ho “Young” Choi, who was signed to the NA Challengers League team at the end of last year, the League of Legends team announced today. This change is in lieu of issues regarding the visa of the team’s anticipated mid laner, Kim “Gori” Tae-woo, who is expected to be making his LCS debut with the organization this split.
“Playing in the LCS way earlier than I expected,” Young tweeted in response to the announcement. “But I’m grateful and excited for the opportunity.”
Young had his first opportunity to showcase his talents to a wider audience this past weekend with the start of the NA Challengers League, where the mid laner brought him and his team to two draws—including a three-man Amumu ultimate as Sylas that changed the trajectory of a close match with 100 Thieves Challengers. Unfortunately, due to the structure of the league, Golden Guardians Challengers were unable to achieve a clear victory in week one.
The 2023 LCS Spring Split lineup for Golden Guardians includes the return of Licorice, River, and Stixxay, as well as the LCS debut of Gori and a team change for former 100T support Huhi. Their first match will place the team against last year’s Spring Split playoff champions, Evil Geniuses—notably including Huhi’s former lane partner for nearly two years, FBI.
It is unclear when Gori’s visa issues will be resolved, though he is still expected to be a part of Golden Guardians’ main roster for the remainder of the Spring Split.