EPTMatch fixing Scandal
It's been 3 years since the match mixing scandal, at the time many major news outlets reported on the event, and it caused a great ripple in the industry. Especially around the player nick named "Ma Bonjwa", and severely affect many people.
The astonishment did not come solely from Ma Jae Yoon, every player that was involved in the match mixing scandal came as a surprise to many. That included another team ace who had a community immage as a hard working player, who had gained alot of fans for his good looks "Hwasin". After deeply hurting the emotions of the fans, and leaving a lastly bad impact with teenage audiences, Hwasin was also punished by the law and removed permanently by Kespa from participation in esports, and faded from sight.
Faced with Hwasin's interview request, reporters were taken aback and uncertain of how to react. Why did he wait until now to do an interview, and what does he hope to achieve? But he answered "I want to apologize (for my crimes)", and always wanted to do so with an interview to apologize for the fans.
Q: What's the rationality behind your decision to accept this interview?
A: It's been three years since the match fixing scandals, now there are alot of fans who don't know me, and alot of people who don't want to hear me speak, but I still wanted to apologize once. I was very regretful and remorseful in the past, but I couldn't stand up (into the public) easily. Now I'm still in a very difficult state. Recently STX Soul won in the SPL. I really wanted to go to the live venue to cheer for them, but if I went, how would the team look like? So I couldn't appear at the venue, I just used my phone to send congratulatory messages. Even though this might seem like gloating, but in reality I'm deeply regretful inside. All of my youth and pre-20s was spent in the team, I still wish that there was a place there for me. Just thinking about this, I would think about all of the wrong things I've done in the past and feel more remorseful than before.
In December of 2009, Hwasin accepted over B.net the first suggestion from Ma Jae Hoon about match fixing, at the time Hwasin was already eliminated from the OSL Ro16, the last match which wasn't important he threw on purpose, and in the MSL Ro8 match against teammate KaL, he threw the first match. He recieved 3 million won for each match, with a total of 6 million won. Afterwards Ma Jae Hoon was sentenced to one year in jail, suspended for 2 years, and 120 hours of community service. Hwasin was confiscated the 6 million won earnings as well as fined an additional 6 million won and expelled by Kespa from participating in esports events.
Hwasin maintained communications with STX Soul's coach Park Jae Seok and other teammates after the matchfixing scandal. While he was in the army he would also write to the younger members in the team, and maintains a friend ship with SoO (STX player, not to be confused with SoO from SKT) who is the same age as him. But Hwasin was unable to personally witness STX winning in SPL, because he just couldn't do it.
Q: Tell us honestly, why (did you) agree to matchfixing back then?
A: First of all, everything I say now will come off as making excuses, but I still have to say it, I was in a very difficult position emotionally back then. There were bad things that happened at home, even though I had a salary, I didn't make much money. Every day was becoming more difficult than the last, suddenly one day Ma Jae Hoon gave me this suggestion. At the time I haven't even heard of the term "matchfixing" (referring to the additional game in OSL where the result didn't matter for hwasin who was already 0-2 in the group, YARNC would have been out of the tournament if hwasin won, but he lost in the tie breakers any ways. reference), so I had no idea what it meant, and Ma Jae Hoon was a very influential persona mong professional players, and I thought that since it was an unimportant match, and I could make money even though I lose, I agreed easily.
Q: But agreeing to something like this was obviously wrong?
A: Yes, I was so stupid and naive. Regardless it was my own choice. At the time I never thought I was match fixing, and talking with each other I never thought that it was such a bad thing, but going into the matches I did purposefully throw a match, and I felt really bad. That's where the guilt kicked in, after that match (OSL) ended I thought that I couldn't ever do this again. And after wards when Ma Jae Hoon came to me to give me the money I shouldn't have taken it.
Q: Did something like this happen again?
A: After that first one ended, Ma Jae Hoon came to find me and told me the opponent's opener. reference Usually it's often possible for openings to get leaked during practice before a televised match happened, so I didn't think of much of it. But that time even knowing the opponenet's opener I still lost. Afterwards it became a rumor that I won alot of money from that match. The weird thing is that I actually didn't do anything wrong this time, but I still felt really bad, I thought that I was too naive and had to make up for my losses. So I lost a map to my teammate
Kal reference. After the second matchfixing incident, Hwasin who was 21 was seen after the match ended to be visibly shaking as he walked out of the booth after the game ended. He couldn't look at the eyes of the fans, and was very scared to see any of the employees working at the station. He thought that it would have been terrible if he continued, so after wards he rejected all plans from not only Ma Jae Hoon but also any other players to matchfix.
Q: Did you talk to Ma Jae Hoon after the matchfixing scandal?
A: Initially I did try to contact him, but it was his mom that picked up the phone. He refused to talk to me. After that he refused to talk to me. So I was never in contact with him again. Afterwards Ma Jae Hoon rejected some suspicions on his part in court, while I pleaded guilty to them on my side, at the time I didn't see Ma Jae Hoon either. All the fans saw it, at the time I didn't know where to look and was in alot of pain. I really wanted to die.
Q: Not only did you have to return all the earnings, you were fined and removed from Esports
A: I was a professional player for 7 years, yet I ended up with my name in ruins, it was too cruel. And I felt so sorry for all the people that trusted me, my family, teammates, and all the related personnel and fans.
Q: Do you hate Ma Jae Hoon who originally gave you the suggestion?
A: Initially I really did hate him, but more so I was fearful of him. But afterwards I felt really angry with myself. After realizing what a terrible thing I've done, I thought that I could only blame myself and not anyone else.
Q: Since Junior High school you were involved completely in Starcraft, how did you live leaving the industry like that?
A: After the incident happened, I went back to my old home for 6 months. I wasn't able to go anywhere on an light heart. I felt that every where people would notice who I was and insult me. So I went everywhere with a cap on, that period was very painful. I lived through it in self-loathing and regret.
Q: And how did you walk away from that?
A: My family gave me alot of consoling, and alot of fans even gave me some encouragements even though they were very disappointed with me. I was so moved that didn't know how to respond. And alot of people who lived far away from me would call me and tell me good things, the coach and teammates didn't blame me but instead were very protective and worrying for me. So I slowly walked away from that rut.
Q: Then you moved to the military service, it wasn't that painful in the army right?
A: Actually quite the opposite. In boot camp since everyone was around the same age, everybody was aware of the matchfixing. Not only the seniors but even the officers would interrogate me and discipline me. Ofcourse there were some people who liked me as a person, they were the ones who got me through it. I tried to see it as that my life in the military was as difficult as everyone else's, and spent alot of time thinking. Why did I do this, I asked myself a thousand times "why".
Q: Now you realize what a bad thing match fixing was?
A: I knew immediately after the scandal was revealed. I was a professional player, and alot of fans supported me, and look at what I did to them. Even now I'm thinking about these things. Now not only in esports, but in other professional sports there are alot of match fixing and scandals, so everyone knows what a terrible thing it is to do. But I don't know if there are still any suspicions of match fixing (SC2), I hope that I can educate the younger players and tell them what a bad thing it is.
Q: In those difficult times, what words made you feel the worst?
A: There are no BW leagues now, even today it just doesn't feel real to me. But the words that make me feel the worst are "The ball that was passed down by so many seniors was lost in an instant in the hands of people like you."Regardless of whether this is true, it was because of my instantaneous error and personal ignorance that caused these accusations, they make me feel very difficult.
Q: After retiring, what did you do?
A: I did everything after retiring. I even went to the hiring boards in labour markets, I did manual labour, worked in delivery, and laboured in some net-cafes, I also tried to work in a coffee shop as a cashier and made coffee. I really want to open a coffee shop, one where you make the coffee completely manually, even if it's very small. In that process to find a direction I met an executive in a company, and started working as a secretary. Now I try to learn from many different types of people that I meet.
Q: What about the future? Anything else you want to say?
A: I thought I was forgotten, but after 3 years, there are still alot of people who try to contact me, it feels amazing. And alot of fans try to encourage me through mini homepy and email, I'm unable to respond to them all, so I wanted to use an interview to thank all of them. Even though I still can't explain myself in detail, it's important to me now to do things that I don't regret. Even though I did alot of things that hurt others, now I still walk on the street and get noticed by people, some of them call out to me, that makes me happy. Some people ask me about the match fixing and others give me support, I want to show them that Hwasin is no longer the progamer Hwasin, but just a normal person who is now doing well. And everything (that I do) will be honest and concrete.
