Esports Integrity Commission has issued a press release regarding recent allegations made about Nicolai “Hunden”. Former head coach of the professional Counter-Strike: Global Offensive team Heroic.
Petersen issued a tweet on 28th July denying categorically that he had shared Heroic’s strategy book with another competitor. Petersen did, however admit that he shared some information about common competitors with rival teams before the tournament.
The statement reads: “The material that I shared was anti-strat materials of my opponents.” The statement stated that this material was exchanged with teammates from other teams during sparring.
Knowledge sharing and development are essential to me as a trainer. Heroic has never shared its own tactics. Petersen added, “I will also always work with ESIC or other institutions and provide any documentation that is needed to help the investigation.”
ESIC stated that Petersen published on Twitter an announcement pertaining to a case that was still under investigation. It decided to release its own statement to protect the public and avoid speculation.
The Commission reported that on Tuesday, 6th July, ESIC had received notification from Petersen’s agent claiming he was involved in a behaviour that could have been classified as a violation of ESIC Integrity Program. This was regarding upcoming matches during the Intel Extreme Masters Cologne Tournament, which occurred between 6-18 July.
ESIC launched an investigation after receiving the notification. They reviewed all evidence and pursued other lines of inquiry.
ESIC stated that it immediately warned ESL (organiser of IEM Cologne) ahead of the event and the organizer then cooperated with ESIC to further investigate the allegations against Petersen.
ESIC found that Petersen had engaged in behavior that was potentially a violation of the Integrity Program. However, the results of this behaviour did not affect the integrity of the IEM Cologne tournament.
ESIC continues to work with all parties concerned since the event earlier in the month. It is now awaiting further evidence from Heroic regarding the various seizures that were made under Danish law.
ESIC has said that it will evaluate any additional evidence and decide what, if any sanctions are appropriate, to impose.
Heroic, Petersen’s previous team, released a similar statement, stating that the team had unanimously agreed that Petersen wouldn’t be participating in IEM Cologne “due severe trust issues”.
Investigations revealed that Petersen shared sensitive and confidential information in the strategy folder of the team with a competitor before the tournament. After the decision to not allow Petersen participate in the event, the team said that he had blocked access to the folder by the members of the team.
Heroic stated that it considered Petersen’s behavior to be a breach of contract. His contract has been terminated and a Danish legal proceeding is underway.
Petersen is one of three professional Counter Strike: Global Offensive coaches who were banned in September last year after it was discovered that they had exploited a bug in the game to gain an unfair advantage during matches.
