I met MeiKo on a windy, rainy afternoon in Ho Chi Minh City, wearing his uniform as he just came back from school. There’s no difference between MeiKo off-stage and on-stage, as he is always full of energy. His life seems busier after winning the Survival Arena championship in Spring 2020, but his education is always a top priority. And this is also the reason we reached out to him – a guy who possesses positive energy in life, a professional player who is passionate, and a boy with the nickname “The Perfect Child”.
Hello MeiKo, can you introduce a bit about yourself?
Hello everyone, I am MeiKo – a professional Free Fire player. My real name is Nguyễn Văn Trung, born on October 13, 2000, and I currently live in Ho Chi Minh City. I am from the V Gaming Free Fire team and also a second-year student at the University of Finance – Marketing.
What led you to Free Fire? It is known that you are a martial artist with 15 Gold Medals in Taekwondo and hold a 2nd Dan black belt, so why did you not continue pursuing this sport?
After a breakup with my ex-girlfriend at 18, I went through a tough time, and my friends invited me to play games, and I coincidentally discovered Free Fire, which has been with me ever since.
Although I was a martial artist and a Taekwondo coach, at that time I needed to focus more on university entrance exams, so I stopped practicing. After entering university, my time has been limited due to studying and working part-time, so I no longer pursued Taekwondo.
MeiKo is very good at studying and also excels at gaming, and you manage to balance both. Do you face any difficulties when you have to do so many things at once? Can you share your tips with everyone?
I feel that there’s nothing difficult at all, just need to manage time well for both activities. I always believe that if I waste time, it’s a shame. For me, studying and gaming are both very important right now, so I have created a reasonable and disciplined schedule for myself.
Do you feel pressure having the nickname ‘The Perfect Child’? As the reigning champion, how do you feel with the new season starting?
For me, everyone has their own perspective about others, and the nickname is just something people call me for fun. I see myself as a regular child of my parents (laughs).
As the reigning champion, I feel that our initial group stage matches haven’t been good. I believe my teammates and I need to learn, research, and practice much more.
What’s your evaluation of the teams participating in the Summer 2020 Survival Arena? Which team do you find the most impressive and the most challenging?
For me, every team is strong, but to say “challenging,” I haven’t seen any team yet!
In the team, MeiKo plays the long-range damage role; is this your specialty? What equipment do you prefer to use in competition?
As a professional player, every position is my specialty. The gear I like to use in competitions is the XM8 and MP5 combo.
MeiKo always exhibits a very confident demeanor when competing; what is the reason for this confidence?
When entering a match, I only think to myself, “Just play the game, there’s nothing to be afraid of.” Part of the experience comes from my time in Taekwondo competitions.
The Summer 2020 Survival Arena has gone through the first two weeks of competition; how do you evaluate your own performance?
After two weeks of competition, I feel unsatisfied because I could have done better. In the upcoming weeks, I will try to regain my form like in the Spring 2020 Survival Arena finals.
Besides studying and competing, MeiKo also livestreams and interacts with fans every night and frequently releases high-quality TikTok content; does this affect your studies and competitions?
No, because the whole team enjoys watching TikTok during free time, so we just invite each other to create content for fun. As for livestreaming, I spend about 2 hours each day interacting with my followers. For me, every follower is like a friend since they share the same interest in gaming as I do.
MeiKo is very popular with girls due to his talents; what is your ideal type?
Currently, I haven’t thought about having a girlfriend yet, but regarding my ideal type, I like girls who are taller than 1.5 meters and a bit slim.
Do you have any words you would like to send to all the fans who have supported you and the V Gaming Free Fire team?
Thank you all for always following and supporting me and the team since its establishment. Especially, I want to thank V Gaming for creating a professional environment for us to practice and prepare for competitions. Coming up, my team and I will do our best to defend this championship. I hope everyone will continue to cheer for me and V Gaming in the upcoming tournaments.
Thank you for taking the time to join this interview. I wish you continued success on your chosen path and to always maintain such positive energy!
Follow MeiKo and the V Gaming Free Fire team at: https://www.facebook.com/FreeFire.VGaming/