TI5 visas: Cty’s visa denied, Valve’s invitation letter “completely disregarded” by Embassy

Less than a month before The International 5, EHOME’s mid player, Chen “Cty” Tianyu, got his US visa request denied. The Chinese organization is asking for help. If Cty is not able to obtain his US visa in due time, EHOME will be forced to find an approved replacement for TI5.

Dimitri Vallette, International Business Manager and Event Manager for MarsTV, broke the news on Twitter:

CTY's visa has been denied. EHOME are looking for help!

— Dimitri Vallette (@GodBlessMali) July 6, 2015

Orrin Xu, Business Development Manager for LGD Gaming, tweeted that the US Embassy turned a blind eye to Valve’s invitation letter:

Embassy completely disregarded valve invitation letter during @EHOMECN visa interview

— Orrin Xu (@LGDnite) July 6, 2015

TI5 visas status

Na’Vi are facing the same situation, as Akbar “Sonneiko” Butaev’s US visa was denied for a second time a few days ago. According to Moritz Zimmermann, Valve have offered their support and Sonneiko is already scheduled for a new appointment:

Short update on Sonneiko's visa: Valve is pulling all their strings and contacts. His next appointment is next week. Finger's crossed!

— Moritz Zimmermann (@MooseWD) July 4, 2015

Team Empire, Virtus.Pro and Vici Gaming have successfully secured all their US visas.

EHOME

Team EHOME, during TI5 Chinese Qualifiers © MarsTV

EHOME defeated CDEC, 3:1, in the TI5 Chinese Qualifiers grand finals and became the first team to qualify for The International 5 in Seattle.

Possibly the most well-known team in the TI5 Chinese qualifiers, E-Home is one of the oldest Dota 2 organizations in China. Unlike other Chinese teams, E-Home is not part of ACE, the Association for Chinese Esports, which governs organizations, players and events in the region. Established in 2010, with Xu “BurNIng” Zhilei and Zhou “KingJ” Yang as part of the lineup, EHOME claimed 10 consecutive championships over the second half of the year. The Chinese team placed second at The International 2011 and fifth/sixth at The International 2012. The organization was not represented at TI3 or TI4 and is aiming to resurface at The International 5.

EHOME roster

“Yang” Yang Pu
“Cty” Chen Tianyu
“rOtK” Bai Fan
“LaNm” Zhang Zhicheng
“DDC” Liang Faming

Chen “Cty” Tianyu

Chen “Cty” Tianyu became known as a talented “pubstar” player, in 2012. He was a part of Vici Gaming between 2012-2013 and then got picked up by RisingStars and HGT the following season. After TI4, he was recruited by DK, in a semi-professional team. In May 2015, Cty joined EHOME – his first serious chance to break into major competitions. He has been EHOME’s mid player for the past three months and played an important part in the Chinese team’s TI5 qualification. Some of his best heroes include Storm Spirit, Shadow Fiend and Queen of Pain. TI5 would be Cty’s first International tournament.

Photo Credits: MarsTV