Jonas 'whimp' Svendsen was born on June 24th, 1988 in Denmark and has since then become one of the greatest Counter-Strike players in the world. At the ripe age of 15, Jonas won ESWC 2004 with The Titans to become the first boy wonder of Danish Counter-Strike.
After the disbandment of Gravitas...
Jonas 'whimp' Svendsen was born on June 24th, 1988 in Denmark and has since then become one of the greatest Counter-Strike players in the world. At the ripe age of 15, Jonas won ESWC 2004 with The Titans to become the first boy wonder of Danish Counter-Strike.
After the disbandment of Gravitas in early 2008, mTw did not hesitate a second to sign Jonas. "Jonas was added to bring new blood into the team. We had some trouble with our motivation, and I think a new player needed to bring the motivation back", teammanager Martin 'guddo' Cording says about the 20-year-old Dane.
With Jonas, the success came back to the team: 2008 was mTw´s year. First places at events like the World e-Sports Masters and the World Cyber Games proof that. After dominating the EM III Continental Finals Europe and placing third at EM III Global Finals in 2009, the Danes recently managed to qualify for the KODE5 Grand Finals.
Right before the EPS Scandinavia Finals and other upcoming events, Jonas sat down with fnatic.com to talk about his life, the current crisis in eSports, the Steam update and more. You can also find some settings and Jonas´ favourites on the following pages. Please note some of the photographs used are courtesy of Julia Christophers from ESL / Jonas himself.
Favorite Music: House
Favorite Song: Side Kick – Deep Fear
Favorite Movie: Remember the Titans
Favorite Book: The Kite Runner
Favorite Food: Sushi
Favorite Drink: Mountain Dew
Mouse: Razer Krait
Mousepad: SteelSeries QcK+
Keyboard: SteelSeries 6G
Headphones: Sennheiser PC 166
Resolution: 640x480
Crosshair: Size: Medium, Colour: Green, Dynamic 0
Sensivity: 3.6 in Counter-Strike with -noforcemaccel -noforcemparms commands activated
Monitor: 100 Hz
fnatic.com: If you could swap lives with any person in the world for one day, which one would it be?
Jonas 'whimp' Svendsen: If I had to be serious about it I would probably swap lives with Obama because I would be able to share my political thoughts with the leaders of the world. If it was just for fun I would swap lives with a guy like Cristiano Ronaldo while he was winning an important soccer match because I guess the thrill of a victory in a stadium with 9874879432987 spectators can be some emotion to experience.
How do you live? Do you have your own flat?
I’m currently living at home together with my sister and my mom, however, I’m trying to find an apartment together with a good friend of mine. In my spare time I try to be a bit social, hanging out with friends and my girlfriend. I also like working out and at the moment I spend three days a week in the gym.
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Jonas together with teammate mJe |
Are you happy with the climate in Denmark?
The weather can be a bit boring at times but it think it helps me appreciate the good weather, so I’m okay with it.
What are your favorite sports?
I enjoy playing all kinds of sports since I like being competitive. I don’t really watch a lot of sports but I can enjoy watching NFL and soccer with friends.
So who do you think will win the Champions League?
I don´t even know which teams are left to be honest. I only watch the finals of the different leagues together with some friends.
How much Counter-Strike do you play these days?
The only Counter-Strike that I have been playing has been together with my team but that will change now since EPS.sca finals, ESWC Masters and KODE5 are coming up, so I might play around 5-6 hours each day.
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Don´t mess with us! |
Is there something you would like to have more time to spend on?
Not really because Counter-Strike gives me a lot of spare time, however, it’s a bit hard to be away from your girlfriend, friends and family during our world tours where we are away from home for a couple of weeks.
What is your conclusion of the first ESL Pro Series Scandinavia? Is there anything you would like to change?
It has been a lot of fun and because of the skill level we have had to keep in shape all the time. The finals shouldn’t have been postponed but nothing besides that.
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mTw.dk ingame |
How did your preparation for the finals look like?
They haven’t been perfect but I still believe that we can win.
Do you think Lemondogs and Mirror stand a chance against the powerhouses mTw.dk and fnatic.MSI?
Both teams, Lemondogs and Mirror, are teams with great individual skill so they definitely have a chance.
Do you as a team consider the event as an important one? Or is your focus on upcoming events such as the KODE5 Grand Final?
Each event is important but we have chosen to bootcamp after the EPS finals so I guess you can say that our main focus is on ESWC Masters and KODE5.
What are the events you look forward to this year?
EPS.sca, ESWC Masters, KODE5 and hopefully e-Stars.
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Jonas focused |
Can you predict the top three Counter-Strike teams in 2009?
I hope that we can remain in the top3 and maybe share it together with fnatic and ex-MYM. Mouz has been a bit shaky lately and SK is always good so they can probably ruin my top3 if one of us loses the motivation to stay on top of our game.
Speaking which, what are your thoughts on the MYM issue?
I’m sad that they have lost some months of salary and have been unsure about their trip to Korea and their new home. I hope that they will find an organization that can send them off to the tournaments that they want.
Are you in touch with the players? Do you think they can find an
organization?
I don't really talk with any of the players but I think that they have found a new organization and I'm happy on their behalf.
Huge organizations going down, events being cancelled - how does the future of gaming look?
I think a lot of industries are undergoing a lot of changes during this financial crisis and e-Sport is not to be spared. I do believe that the organizations and events that can make it through this crisis will grow even bigger and better in the end.
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Jonas screaming |
What if you were released from your contract at mTw? Would you have any plans?
Not until this summer where some of us will begin studying. I guess we will all end our e-Sport careers in mTw.
Does this mean there will be changes in the lineup?
No, we will keep this lineup and still strive to be the best even though some of us will begin studying.
What was your dream job when you were a kid?
I would have to go with pilot since both of my parents work in the airline industry.
You have won many titles in your career. Which one does mean the most to you?
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Jonas hugs Sunde at WEM 2008 |
My current teammates hate me for it but I will have to say ESWC 2004 with Titans because it was my first big tournament, however, KODE5 2008, WEG 2008 and WCG 2008 are not far behind.
Is there a tournament left you have not won yet?
Would have been great to win a CPL title but I never got the chance to attend one because of their stupid age limit.
Valve has recently released a Steam update, which, among other things, adds a step sound to jumping. Are you happy with the update? Will it affect your game?
Together with that and the sound increase of the steps you make when you do the Russian jump, Valve’s changes has contributed to make Counter-Strike slower and less fun to watch for a spectator because the gamers no longer can move around as quickly and silent as they could before. I really can’t see the reason behind these changes and I do hope that they will listen to some of the professional gamers since they tend to have a slightly more enhanced and beneficial point of view on which changes that should be made to this wonderful game.
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Jonas with the sword |
Do you play other games beside Counter-Strike?
No not really.
Could you imagine to move abroad for gaming like zet and lurppis did for instance?
It would be a great experience and I’m sure that you can use it later on in your adult career life outside of gaming because you will be able to establish a lot of contacts abroad, get more knowledge in a different culture and learn a lot about yourself because you will be gone from home for a long time. If the timing was right and the team who made the proposal was right I would definitely consider doing it.
Thanks for your time.
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