KRÜ Esports player Daveeys passes away at 23 years old

Terrible news for the VALORANT competitive scene in the VCT and worldwide. On September 4, 2023, the South American organization KRÜ Esports announced the death of one of its players, the 23-year-old Colombian Santiago “Daveeys” Ruiz.

Undoubtedly, this is really hard news for the entire VALORANT and even CS:GO community, as many of us knew Daveeys during his time in CS:GO. In addition, Personally speaking, I met Daveeys playing CS:GO PUGS at ESEA and FACEIT in South America, and I can say that, within the whole Colombian community, which for the most part tends to be somewhat toxic, Santiago was one of the few who wasn’t a bit toxic.

KRÜ Esports announce Daveeys’ passing

Through a harsh post on its Twitter account, KRÜ Esports announced that following a decompensation last Sunday, September 3, Daveeys passed away.

Es con profunda tristeza que tenemos que comunicarles que, tras sufrir una descompensación el domingo, falleció @Daveeys21.

No hay forma de suavizar esto, nos tomó a todos por sorpresa.

Daveeys, Santi, era un player espectacular y un compañero de primera. Con su característica… pic.twitter.com/muuHmBfCII

— KRÜ Esports (@KRUesports) September 4, 2023

It is worth noting that Santi, as he was called within KRÜ, passed away just one day after his 23rd birthday. In addition, the Colombian was part of KRÜ Esports since the end of 2022, so he played the entire VCT 2023 season, and even, he was even one of the pillars of the qualification through the LCQ of the team for the VALORANT Champions 2023.

KRÜ Esports’ statement, translated from Spanish, reads as follows:

“It is with deep sadness that we must inform you that, after suffering a decompensation on Sunday, @Daveeys21 passed away.

There is no way to smooth this over; it took us all by surprise.

Daveeys, Santi, was a spectacular player and a first-class teammate. With his trademark hard-working humility, he was proud to be able to inspire and represent his country and region at the top of the global VALORANT. It was his dream, and he saw it come true.

We all at KRÜ accompany their family and friends in this difficult moment and ask the entire community to support them with their strength and love.”

Players and Teams react to the announcement

Both professional players and top teams such as Fnatic reacted to the painful announcement by KRÜ Esports.

Rest in peace, Daveeys. All our thoughts with his family and everyone at KRU right now ❤️

— FNATIC (@FNATIC) September 4, 2023

On the other hand, Mario “malbsMd” Samayoa, another Latin American player who is currently part of M80 and who also played alongside Daveeys in his time in CS:GO, said:

“You are going to miss a lot, Davo; I love you very much, and you were one of the best teammates I’ve ever had; I will always remember all the moments together. Most of all, the night we beat w7m in LA League, a hug to heaven wino.”

Vas a hacer mucha falta Davo, te quiero mucho y fuiste uno de los mejores teammates que he tenido, siempre voy a recordar todos los momentos juntos y más que todo la noche en la que le ganamos a w7m en LA League, un abrazo hasta el cielo wino ❤️😔 https://t.co/rLXSOjnuGW pic.twitter.com/j3tIV3s6CG

— Mario Samayoa (@malbsMd) September 4, 2023

In addition, Santiago’s passing becomes the second VALORANT professional player competing in the VCT to pass away this season. Also, Recall that Team Vitality’s Karel “Twisten” Ašenbrene died last June.

Header: Colin Young-Wolff | Riot Games