THE FIRST OF HIS KIND;Johnathan “Fatal1ty” Wendel is the most accomplished, professional Gamer in history and the breakthrough name and face of the sport. As the world’s most famous gamer he spreads interest in gaming wherever he goes and, in the process, has become the sport’s worldwide ambassador. Wendel wants gaming to be considered a true sport and considers himself an “E-Sportsman”. Like any other professional athlete, he trains for hours a day and analyzes his performances by watching videos of himself in action – all with the goal of being the best in the world.
Fatal1ty is a naturally gifted athlete who competed in many sports including tennis and golf before devoting his full time efforts to gaming. He still uses physical training to maintain and hone his natural gifts of quick reflexes and lightning fast hand/eye coordination. Johnathan also excelled in school, gaining a 3.4 GPA average in high school before entering college, from which he withdrew as his gaming career took off. Fatal1ty wants to communicate the picture of a well-rounded, articulate young man and change the image of the typical gamer as a desensitized geek who only spends time in front of a monitor.
No one has ever come close to the earnings, titles and media coverage of Fatal1ty. His record of success speaks for itself. He presently reigns as the holder of 12 major championships, winning titles in 5 different games, a feat never before accomplished. The games in which he holds winning titles are Doom 3, Alien vs. Predator 2, Unreal Tournament 2003, Quake III and Painkiller
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Fatal1ty started professional gaming in 1999 by entering the Cyberathlete Professional League (CPL) tournament inDallaswhere he won $4,000 and a third place finish before flying toSwedento compete in a tournament against the top 12 players in the world. He took first place by winning 18 straight games and losing none, emerging as the top ranked Quake III player in the world. Two months later he maintained his top ranking inDallasby winning the CPL again and a $40,000 grand prize.
Since then Fatal1ty has traveled the globe to compete against the best in the world, winning prizes and acclaim, including the 2005 CPL World Tour Championship in New York City for a $150,000 first place triumph. From the time Fatal1ty began to realize success he has preached a doctrine of “giving back to gaming” and has convinced his business partners to do the same as part of their overall goal to position gaming in a positive light. As part of this quest he has organized events that have given away a great deal of money and prizes, including an exhibition held at The Great Wall of China for a prize of $125,000 to selected challengers who could beat him. The relationship that has been built between him and his business partners, combined with the sales of his own branded products, provides the capital and human resources needed to pull off attention getting promotions.
In December 2006, Johnathan joined forces with Championship Gaming Series (CGS) as exclusive on-air analyst, global spokesperson and gaming ambassador to help establish competitive video gaming as a 21st century sport. The exposure given to CGS through live, world wide coverage on DirecTV and sister companies SkyTV and Star to 120 million homes, furthered his goal of achieving global status for competitive gaming.
In August 2007, Johnathan was awarded the first ever Lifetime Achievement Award in the four year history of the eSports-Award for “showing exceptional sportsmanship, taking part in shaping eSports into what it is today and for being the prime representative of this young sport. He has become the figurehead for eSports worldwide”.
In April 2009 Johnathan ‘Fatal1ty’ Wendel set a Guinness World Record for most frags in an hour. This unbelievable feat was accomplished at the CEC Copenhagen Conference where Fatal1ty scored 672 frags in 60 minutes while competing against 5 rotating competitors.
In August 2010 Fatal1ty was the first video gamer to be inducted into the International Video Gaming Hall of Fame, in Ottumwa, Iowa.
Johnathan continues to travel the world promoting E-sports, conducting gaming exhibitions and attending media events, all the while maintaining his involvement in development of Fatal1ty brand products to bring the best possible gaming gear to market.
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