For Helen “Dear” Jang and Dallas Fuel, August 13th couldn’t come earlier.
Somehow it was like that.
Jang, Deputy General Manager of Fuel, was on her phone for most of June and July, waiting for the alarm to go off every two hours to remind her to check for interview dates for Kim “Pine” Do-Hyeon visas have been postponed.
Fuel’s new hitscan player, Kim, who still hasn’t appeared in an Overwatch League game since signing with Fuel in May 2021, has also spent the entire regular season waiting. Dallas had a world-class sniper player on its roster, but he might as well have been locked in a safe.
“All of the previous steps to get his visa approved were approved in mid-June,” Jang said. “From then on we tried to find the earliest available interview date.”
It’s not uncommon for the visa process to take weeks, and most days were already jammed with interviews. That left the Fuel patiently waiting for their original date or for others to drop out of their interviews.
At one point, Jang was afraid that Kim wouldn’t get an interview until September. That would probably have been too late for Pine to play with his new team. Then August 13th appeared on the calendar.
Jang got hold of this spot quickly. The Fuel still weren’t thrilled to arrive this late in the regular season, but it was better than no debut at all for Pine. That date could slowly be pushed up, Jang thought, so she set an alarm on her phone every two hours. There were no further appointments for weeks.
Kim missed the opportunity to connect with his teammates. Of course he wanted to play, but the high level of ping practice from Korea made it difficult for him. The Fuel was also competitive as the top team in the West standings, making three trips to Hawaii without a hitscan player.
“For them to have this bonding time without me alone, it was really just to achieve their common goal,” Kim said of the interpreter. “It’s not like they want to ignore me or anything, so I get that part. Mainly because of the jet lag or the time difference. We didn’t have many opportunities to talk to each other and not meet in person. “
When August 4th opened for Kim, it was a rushed process. Jang secured the space and built it up. After the interview was completed and his visa approved, the itinerary was set. Jang was still stressed out about the possibility of a little hiccup with a passport. When Kim arrived in Dallas on August 6th, most of the weight was removed from her shoulders.
However, she wasn’t finished helping Kim with the accommodation. He had an important request.
“Pine told me that he didn’t eat the food that was provided on the flight because he wanted his schedule to be exactly what our players eat,” said Jang. “He may have had the first meal, but he just skipped the second meal.”
“There are no Five Guys in Korea, and that’s what he wanted. So we got him Five Guys. “
Kim loves the United States, he told Jang. She added that Kim’s parents must have banter about how it was more comfortable for him than Korea.
As to why Kim didn’t play along in Fuel’s 3-0 loss and the San Francisco Shock on Sunday are legitimate, but perhaps context was lacking. He could have had a good playing time, but the Fuel only had days to practice, with Kim fully adapting to the clock, getting vaccinated, and being sure of certain maps.
The Fuel now has a month until the OWL playoffs begin on September 16 at Esports Stadium Arlington. Dallas has its hitscan player. It only took three months, hundreds of alarms, and a strawberry shake to get there.
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