Fredrik Johansson (electronic sports player)

Fredrik Johansson (born September 26, 1984), better known by the pseudonym MaD] Q [FroG or simply MaDFroG, is a famous Swedish WarCraft III player.

He is considered one of the best and most influential players of the Undead race. He has been successful in a wide number of tournaments and is popular for his unique and ingenious gameplay, which earned him a devoted fanbase. His excellent use of gargoyles against the night elf race is one of his most feared abilities. His SN (screen name) is now MaDFroG or also just Slar on the Northrend Battle.Net world.

Early Recognition

His talent as a competitive Real Time Strategy gamer was noticeable at an early age, he finished third in the StarCraft: Brood War Nations tournament at the first World Cyber Games in 2001 representing Sweden.

When WarCraft III: Reign of Chaos became one of the world's premier competitive games in 2003, Johansson was recognized as one of its most talented players and recruited by professional gaming team IT Gaming.

Showing strong results in online competitions, he gained true recognition as one of the world's best after becoming the runner-up of the 2003 Electronic Sports World Cup and he, as well a number of his teammates, were offered a chance to participate in televised South Korean competitions by Intel Korea. ["recap of Lonny's career" - [http://www.ggl.com/index.php?controller=News&method=article&id=4822] ]

tay in South Korea

The environment in Seoul, South Korea, known unofficially as the "mecca" of professional gaming, suited him well and he improved as a player. During the first part of his stay he had some success in Korean competitions, finishing third in the Kbk Jeju Tournament, but he did not feel satisfied with what he had achieved.

When his teammates returned to their respective countries by the end of 2003, Johansson remained in the country. A few months later he won the 2004 Blizzard Worldwide Invitational in WarCraft III: The Frozen Throne, picking up 25,000 USD. ["Newspost at SK Gaming team site about Fredrik's victory at BWI" - [http://www.sk-gaming.com/news/4360/] ]

This cemented his status as the strongest western player in his respective game and as one of the strongest players in South Korea. This prompted the professional Korean gaming team Sonokong/Frienz to invite him to join, which he accepted. ["Newspost at SK Gaming team site about Fredrik joining Sonokong/Frienz" - [http://www.sk-gaming.com/news/4456/] ]

His new team members were some of the most recognized professional WarCraft III players of their time, and had various successes in Korean leagues such as winning OGN's SUMA pro-league and MBC Clan Team Battle.

Return to Sweden

Feeling satisfied with his results, he returned to Sweden and rejoined SK Gaming after staying in Seoul for 11 months. He would once again represent his country at the Electronic Sports World Cup and finished second again, losing to Dae Hui Cho in the finals.

He was recognized as the greatest competitive gamer of the year 2004 by a panel of experts, and received the first of the "eSports Player of the Year" awards that have been award annually since 2004. ["Overview nominees and winners of eSports Award 2004" - [http://www.esports-award.org/history/nominees2004/] ]

Afterwards his motivation for the game dropped, and he announced his retirement twice in February and October 2005 at respectively the World e-Sport Games in South Korea and after BlizzCon in the USA. Ever since he has not participated in any competitions, but he did announce his return as a amateur gamer in April, 2007.

Notable Accomplishments

1on1

* 2004 2^nd EGG (Norway)
* 2004 9^th World Cyber Games (USA)
* 2004 2^nd Electronic Sports World Cup (prize: $6 000) (France)
* 2003 1^st Blizzard Worldwide Invitational (prize: $25 000) (South Korea)
* 2003 3^rd Kbk Jeju Tournament (prize: $1 000) (Souh-Korea)
* 2003 2^nd Electronic Sports World Cup (prize: $5 000) (France)
* 2003 9^th Cyberathlete Professional League Europe Cannes (France)
* 2002 5^th Cyberathlete Professional League Europe Oslo (Norway)

Team

* 2005 3^rd Electronic Sports League's WC3L Season VIII (Germany) (as a member of SK Gaming International)
* 2004 4^th Electronic Sports League's WC3L Season VI (Denmark) (as a member of SK Gaming International)
* 2004 1^st Ongamenet's SUMA pro-league (South Korea) (as a member of Sonokong/Frienz)
* 2004 1^st MBCGame's Clan Team Battle (South Korea) (as a member of Sonokong/Frienz)
* 2001 3^rd World Cyber Games's Nations StarCraft (South Korea) (as a representative of Sweden)

External links

* [http://www.wcreplays.com/interviews.php?get=14 Interview with Madfrog 2004]
* [http://war3.replays.net/bbs/htm_data/873/0704/1236389.html Interview with Madfrog April 2007]
* [http://madfrog.eu/ MaDFroG fansite April 2007]
* [http://www.gotfrag.com/war/story/30816/ MadFroG leaves SK Gaming]
* [http://www.sk-gaming.com/news/5641/ MaDFroG Rejoins SK Gaming]
* [http://www.ggl.com/index.php?controller=News&method=article&id=4822 Fredrik "MaDFroG" Johansson Returns To Warcraft 3]
* [http://madfrog.eu Fredrik "MaDFroG" Johansson Webpage]

References