The 2023 LCS Summer Split is set to begin today, but 100 Thieves fans might already be in shambles after the team recently confirmed it will be without its new starting mid laner for the first week of the season.
Former Gen.G mid lane prospect Lim "Quid" Hyeon-seung was supposed to join 100 Thieves' main roster for the opening week of the split. But due to visa issues, the 19-year-old will not be able to play, the org announced today. Instead, the team will be fielding assistant coach Erlend "Nukeduck" Våtevik Holm as its starting mid laner for the first week of the summer.
Yet again, visa issues have affected an LCS team and could prove to be a huge nuisance for an org looking to start off the season strong after falling short of expectations last spring. 100 Thieves were slated to be one of the stronger contenders in the league after picking up Bjergsen and Doublelift, two of the most-decorated players in the region's history, in the offseason.
Although they did maintain a top-three position in the regular season standings, a 10-8 record was still seen as a bit of a let-down for some LCS fans, especially after they only won a single game through weeks four to six.
100T's playoff run was even more disappointing as they failed to win a single series after getting swept by FlyQuest in the first round and losing to Golden Guardians in the lower bracket. And then, in the following mid-season break, Bjergsen decided to retire from esports completely, leaving a massive hole in the roster.
Related: Dot Esports' 2023 LCS Summer Split preseason power rankings
Quid was supposed to be the solution to this problem, coming in as a young, promising candidate who had plenty of experience from rising up through an established LCK development system. With Ssumday returning as the team's top laner, things were looking up for their upcoming heist of the LCS championship.
Instead, they'll be placing their hopes into Nukeduck, who hasn't played on-stage since 2022 during his final LEC split with Excel Esports. He has been with 100 Thieves from that moment onward, and will now be supporting head coach Jang "Cain" Nu-ri behind-the-scenes as an assistant coach. But before he takes out his clipboard, he'll be dusting off his keyboard and mouse to play against FlyQuest in the final game of the first day at around 8pm CT.
You can catch 100 Thieves in action when the 2023 LCS Summer Split returns today at 4pm CT.