Na`vi CS:GO IGL Kirill “Boombl4” Mikhailov had an incredibly interesting interview with hltv about his career, lesser-known aspects of his life, and the changes since the outbreak of COVID-19.
The COVID-19 pandemic has fundamentally changed the lives of most people around the world, and CS:GO gamers are no exception. With LAN tournaments postponed and moved online, tournaments have been held consecutively over the past four months, causing many teams issues in maintaining performance over such a long period. Yesterday, Kirill “Boombl4” Mikhailov, IGL of Na`vi, had a very interesting interview with hltv about his career, lesser-known life aspects, and the changes since the outbreak of COVID-19.
1. Starting His Career
Kicking off the interview, Boombl4 shared about his early days when he first started competing professionally; he mentioned that he discovered CS1.5 when his uncle Sasha introduced it to him and quickly fell in love with the game. There were times he played other games like Pointblank and League of Legends, but one summer he decided to buy CS:GO and quickly achieved the rank of GE; that was when he realized this was what he wanted.
Boombl4 decided to drop out of school in 11th grade and asked his parents for a year to find a team and step into the esports industry. Initially, his parents were not pleased with this decision as they thought esports was just a scam. However, when Boombl4 and his teammates competed at a Minor, they changed their perspective and began to learn about esports. Now, both Boombl4’s parents and grandparents always follow and support him at tournaments, often calling to comfort him after losses.
Talking about his nickname, he shared that it originated from when he was playing League of Legends; he was extremely toxic and always criticized his teammates, and a friend called him Boomich.
Reflecting on life during COVID-19, Boombl4 shared that the pandemic has truly changed his life, with every day feeling the same and he gradually feels like he is becoming a robot. Additionally, he is extremely cautious about the pandemic as he lives with a newborn brother and grandparents, so he has limited going outside to avoid infection.
2. About His Time Competing for EPG, QBF, Winstrike,…
He realized he had become a pro player when he signed his first contract with EPG. It all started when he and his teammates won 16-3 against a mix team of hooch; afterwards, Boombl4 became friends with hooch and joined his TeamSpeak server. Here, he met many pro players like flamie, tonyblack,… One day, hooch announced that there was an opportunity for Boombl4 to join FlipSid3, and although that did not happen, he introduced Boombl4 to EPG and was accepted.
After a period of unsuccessful play for EPG, he left the team and was introduced by a friend to Quantum Bellator Fire (QBF). The first tournament Boombl4 and his new teammates competed in was a Minor to determine which teams would participate in ELEAGUE Major: Boston 2018. Here, playing with a very relaxed mindset, despite not practicing a lot, the QBF members still remarkably finished second overall, even after being pushed to the lower bracket by pro100 from the first round of playoffs. Securing a spot at the Major was a significant success for QBF, but Boombl4 and his teammates once again stunned the world as they successively passed through the New Challengers and New Legends stages to reach the New Champions stage, thereby earning the Legend title and securing a spot at their second Major of 2018, FACEIT Major: London.
In the New Champions stage, QBF was defeated 0-2 by the best team in the CIS region, Na`vi, and exited the tournament; however, their journey at the ELEAGUE Boston Major is still considered one of the most beautiful fairy tales in Major history, second only to Cloud9’s championship run at this same Major.
However, after the Major, QBF faced many internal issues and conflicts with the organization, and subsequently, Boombl4 and his teammates transitioned to play for Winstrike. In their new colors, Boombl4 and his teammates could not replicate the feat and ended up last at FACEIT Major: London 2018, and afterward, he received word that Na`vi was looking to recruit him.
3. Since Joining Na`vi
The invitation to join Na`vi, a dream for every CS:GO player in the CIS region, came at a very sensitive time for Boombl4. Not long before, he had rebuilt the team with Winstrike, and accepting Na`vi’s invitation meant he would leave the team he had built, leaving them without a captain right before the Minor. Boombl4 requested Na`vi to postpone the transfer until after the Minor, but Na`vi did not agree, and ultimately, Boombl4 accepted to join Na`vi.
At the beginning of his time at Na`vi, he was genuinely impressed by the skill level of the players, with Electronic being the one who helped him integrate the most. During this time, he also learned a lot from Zeus, and while he did not always fully understand Zeus’s team calls, Boombl4 analyzed Zeus’s calling style and developed his own gameplay.
Boombl4 stated that his best performance at Na`vi was when Perfecto had just joined the team. At that time, he had been playing for Na`vi for over half a year and was gradually getting used to the top level of CS. At IEM Katowice 2020, he reached peaks in both individual performance and team calling, significantly contributing to Na`vi’s championship.
When asked why Na`vi’s performance has been so inconsistent, Boombl4 commented: “Stability in CS is very hard to achieve” and “we can win a few tournaments in a row, then lose one, and people will say that Na`vi’s performance is declining, while in reality, it’s simply that other teams have gotten stronger, or we faced a nemesis.” He also commented that the only team to ever be considered stable was Astralis, and to achieve that stability, their players had to sacrifice a lot, becoming exhausted and needing to take breaks from competition. Boombl4 also stated that Na`vi has become more accustomed to the online environment, and recent results have shown that.
4. Some Other Interesting Information
– As mentioned above, for Boombl4, his best teammate is Flamie, while the worst is wayLander, who only practices with the team but does not improve his personal skills.
– When he first started competing professionally at QBF and EPG (Elements Pro Gaming), Boombl4 had a salary of $500. After moving to Winstrike, this salary increased nearly five times, and when he joined Na`vi, it increased a few more times.
– Regarding his weight, he shared that he suffers from hypothyroidism, which causes a deficiency in hormone release and disrupts metabolism. There were times when even with very little food, he could gain up to 10kg in a month, but fortunately, by the time he turned 19, his condition had begun to improve, and he was in the process of losing weight. Boombl4 also revealed that he currently weighs about 164 kg and had once weighed up to 192 kg. His goal is to reduce to around 110 kg, a weight that suits his height of 190 cm.
– Boombl4 is very afraid of getting lost in airports and missing flights. He also fears flying insects and dislikes sleeping with the door open. However, he is not afraid of heights and does not fear flying.
– The most memorable tournament for him was IEM Katowice 2020, while the most forgettable loss was at ESL Pro League Season 10: Final.
– Among the cities Boombl4 has visited, Lisbon, Barcelona, Atlanta, and Chongqing are the places he found most impressive.