We have agreed to loan our Academy AWPer, Paavo "podi" Heiskanen, to Sprout until the end of 2024.
UPDATE 25.03.2024
Due to @sproutGG ending its operations, @podicsgo returns to ENCE Academy effective immediately.
— ENCE (@ENCE) March 25, 2024
He will still finish his official matches with the Sprout roster. We want to proactively support podi's career, and continue developing together. pic.twitter.com/OueiK9ZcDI
Paavo "podi" Heiskanen joined ENCE Academy at its inception in July of 2022. During our shared journey, podi has developed to incredible heights both as a player and as a person, and has solidified his place as one of the most promising Finnish talents.
Now, we have agreed with Sprout to allow podi to join their roster on a loan contract until the end of this year. Even though we are sad to lose such an integral part of our Academy roster, we are also very excited for podi to step outside of his Academy roots and get more experience in an international roster.
“Finally, podi gets the chance that he deserves.
podi has been working tirelessly and it has not gone unnoticed in the CS scene. In just over a year and a half, podi has developed from a practically unknown player to a bold prediction of top names in the industry (NiKo and NertZ know what’s up). He is a prime example of what can be achieved when you focus your time and energy on the right things.
The AWP monster has been waiting for this kind of opportunity for a while, and now he is ready to leave the nest and prove his skills in a well-known international top team. This is an important step in his career to gain more valuable international experience as he makes his way towards the tier 1 scene. Creating a strong and good foundation is the key to success.
Thank you Sprout for the smooth loan negotiations – take good care of podi.”
- Eemeli "Woomera" Ikonen, ENCE Academy Program Lead
We wish podi all the best in this next step of his career. You’re gonna kill it, Paavo!
The Academy team's tryouts are already well underway. We will provide an update about the roster later on.