Natus Vincere's CS:GO captain, Aleksi "Aleksib" Virolainen, answered questions "about his first times." During the survey, the esports player recalled his first team, bootcamp, and meeting with sniper Aleksandr "s1mple" Kostylev.

I met s1mple for the first time at StarLadder in Kyiv. I don't remember what year it was, but it was definitely the first time. [Question: when did you first play against NAVI?] That's a good question. I don't know, but I'm almost certain it was with ENCE, most likely in 2018. I played for ENCE, but I don't remember which tournament it was.  My first victory at a major tournament was at StarLadder, which I just mentioned. In the final, we defeated Vega Squadron. [First big purchase with the prize money?] It was a watch that I bought for my father. 

Aleksi Aleksib Virolainen

According to Aleksib, ENCE wasn't the club where his journey started.

My first pro team was HAVU in 2017. I was playing as a substitute then. Or no, I had trials with ENCE in 2016, but I didn't have a contract at that time. My first full-fledged team was HAVU in 2017, that's where my journey began.I have always been an in-game leader. With friends, in my first and second teams. I was not the captain when I had trials with ENCE in 2016. I just played and saw what I was achieving in the game. I became the captain of that team, but much later. Since then, I have constantly played in the IGL role.
If I'm not mistaken, the first bootcamp was with ENCE in 2016. Before that, we would just gather for LAN parties with friends and could bring our computers, but I wouldn't call that a bootcamp. So yes, the first one was in 2016.

Aleksi Aleksib Virolainen

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The next tournament for NAVI will be the ESL Pro League Season 18. Aleksib's squad was seeded in Group C, where they will face 5yclone in the first round. The meeting is scheduled for September 13, 17:00 EEST. Detailed pre-match statistics of the teams are available at the link.

EPL S18 takes place from August 30 to October 1 in Malta. Teams are competing for a prize fund of $850 thousand. The champion will also secure slots at the BLAST Premier: World Final 2023 and IEM Katowice 2024. The schedule and results of the tournament can be followed here.