Renowned LFL player and formerly associated with Aegis, Jérémy “Eika” Valdenaire, used the platform of Twitter to unveil an intimate detail regarding his way of life. He proclaimed himself as gay and the acknowledgment he received from fans has been extraordinarily positive.
Eika has been a popular identity in the French League of Legends society for an extended period. He has been part of multiple teams operating in the national leagues. There was also an interval when he represented Immortals in their 2020 LCS season. Eika is now associated with the newly-formed LFL team, Gentle Mates, which was taken over from his previous team LDLC OL.
In an unexpected revelation on Twitter, Valdenaire announced that he had been concealing a part of his personal life from his followers for a significant duration. The post was deeply personal and touched the hearts of many, receiving an outpour of supportive responses from the public.
The tweet from Valdenaire was simple yet profound, it started off with the words: “A bit of a personal message”. The message was in both French and English for all his fans to understand, “I would like to come out as a gay man.”
Valdenaire further went onto express his insecurities and uncertainty with respect to coming out publicly. An industry that still has occurrences of homophobic remarks made him fearful, but he nonetheless decided to take this brave step.
“I am writing this today, for me but also for all the people who can recognize themselves in what I am writing, and if so: please do not be too hard on yourself.” Valdenaire advised his followers.
Witnessing the announcement, fans were quick to respond and flood social media with messages of encouragement. Irrespective of the language barrier, with most messages being in French, English speaking followers also got involved, posting the translation of Eika's tweet, tagged as “wholesome”.
Valdenaire has truly set an example by not denying his true self. In his Twitter post, Valdenaire expressed candidly about his internal struggles related to the acceptance of his sexuality.
Figures from the LFL community offered their insights following the proclamation. “Lots of courage to talk about this,” was the translated response from the famous French shoutcaster, Dariusz “Finghin” Walczak. “Strength Eika, for what you may have suffered, and bravo for having managed to talk about it.”
Overcoming fear and breaking the stereotypes, Jérémy “Eika” Valdenaire's bold decision must be seen as a precedent for others who might be facing similar struggles. The supportive messages he received truly show the progress society is making, even in the e-sport community, towards a more accepting and inclusive environment.