He is the first and only Counter-Strike player from Latvia to have won a major – the largest and most notable tournament in the game.[1]
Helvijs is also the first esports player to be nominated as Latvia's Sportsman of the Year in Technical Sports category.[2]
Career
Saukants started his professional career in January 2019 with team Epsilon Esports.[3] In September 2019 he moved to the Faze Clan team.[4][5] With his new team he achieved a win at the BLAST Pro Series: Copenhagen 2019 in 2019, a 3rd–4th place. Place at the Intel Extreme Masters XIV – Beijing and fourth place at the BLAST Pro Series: Global Final 2019.[citation needed]
In 2022, he won the IEM Katowice 2022 with a 3–0 win against G2 Esports and then the ESL Pro League Season 15.[6] For his achievements, he was recognized by HLTV as the best player in a tournament for the first time at IEM Katowice. He then won his first major tournament with the PGL Major Antwerp 2022 after a 2–0 win against Natus Vincere.[7][8][9] The same year he also won the IEM Cologne 2022 with a 3–2 win against Natus Vincere.[10] He also reached the finals of the Roobet Cup and the Blast Premier: Fall Finals 2022. For his individual achievements, he received another MVP award in the Blast Premier: Fall Finals 2022. He was also voted 6th in the list of best players.[11]
In 2024, he competed in the PGL Major Copenhagen 2024 finals, marking the second time on the grand final stage in the most notable event in Counter-Strike. This time, FaZe Clan lost to NAVI with a score of 1–2 and placed 2nd in the tournament.[12] After the major, he with his team FaZe Clan participated in IEM Chengdu 2024 and won the 1st place with a score 2–0 against Mouz.[13][14]
With prize money of over $1,000,000, he is Latvia's most successful e-athlete in terms of prize money as well as the first one to cross the $1 million mark in winnings.[15][16]
