Team Expert's Sasha "Scarlett" Hostyn became the first woman to win a major StarCraft II tournament after beating Jin Air Green Wings' Kim "sOs" Yoo at the Intel Extreme Masters pre-Winter Olympics event in Pyeongchang, South Korea, on Tuesday night. She is also the second non-South Korean to win a major SC II tournament in the country.
Scarlett breezed through the bracket, dropping only one game each in the early rounds, quarters and semis. But it was Game 5 against sOs in which Scarlett dominated. The Zerg versus Protoss setup proved to be an advantageous game for Scarlett, who completely deconstructed sOs's defenses. Scarlett ended up taking it 4-1 in the grand finals, walking away with $50,000.
This win marks a major moment in Scarlett's career. Not only did she take down sOs, the highest-earning StarCraft II player of all time, she also won an international premiere event for the first time.
Competitive gaming was recognized by the International Olympic Committee as a sport in November 2017. Given that South Korea was one of the first countries to treat competitive gaming as a professional event, it's fitting that Pyeongchang 2018 would serve as the inauguration of Olympic esports.
Scarlett's win comes following news that Kim "Geguri" Se-yeon will be the first woman to play in the Overwatch League when she joins the Shanghai Dragons later this month.