TL;DR
- Nuguri diagnosed with pneumothorax immediately after LCK Summer Finals victory
- Successful emergency surgery completed, requiring extended hospital recovery period
- Will miss team’s September 11 China departure, traveling separately on September 18
- Potential performance impact at Worlds due to lost practice and recovery time
- Finished LCK split with top statistical performance among all league top laners
DAMWON Gaming’s championship celebration turned to concern when top laner Jang “Nuguri” Ha-gwon received a serious medical diagnosisshortly after their decisive victory against DragonX in the 2020 LCK Summer Split championship match.
The newly crowned LCK summer champions experienced a rapid shift from triumph to alarm when Nuguri reported experiencing breathing difficulties and chest discomfort. Medical professionals quickly identified his condition as pneumothorax, commonly known as a collapsed lung, requiring immediate surgical intervention. The procedure concluded successfully, and the player has now entered the recovery phase.
Nuguri of
@DamwonGaming
expressing he was feeling short-of-breath, a day after the LCK finals. He got checked up and was diagnosed with pneumothorax (collapsed lung), immediately went into surgery. He’s now recovering and will fly out to China a week after his DWG teammates.
https://t.co/NW7LHc2DE4— Ashley Kang 애슐리강 (@AshleyKang)
September 8, 2020
Nuguri’s Delayed Journey to 2020 World Championship
DAMWON management confirmed the surgical outcome was positive, though Nuguri requires additional hospitalization for proper recuperation. Consequently, the organization’s premier top lane specialist will not accompany his teammates on their originally planned travel date to China.
The team’s scheduled departure for China occurs on September 11, while medical clearance for Nuguri isn’t anticipated until September 13. This scheduling conflict results in the player remaining in Korea until September 18, when he’ll undertake the journey to China with dedicated support from a DAMWON team manager.
Although Nuguri’s delay amounts to approximately one week, this interruption could significantly affect his competitive readiness for the 2020 World Championship. While DAMWON bypasses the play-in stage, their top laner forfeits crucial preparation time with the squad. More critically, even post-recovery, Nuguri may not achieve peak competitive form, raising strategic questions about potential substitution by reserve player Lee “Flame” Ho-jong during group stage matches versus maintaining Nuguri in the starting lineup.
The absence of practice sessions, or potentially competitive matches at Worlds, represents a substantial competitive disadvantage for DAMWON. Their emerging top lane talent concluded the competitive split demonstrating superior statistical performance compared to all LCK top lane competitors. Nuguri particularly excelled during early game laning phases, achieving league-leading metrics in gold accumulation, experience gain, and creep score differentials at the 10-minute mark.
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Action Checklist
- Implement immediate medical assessment for players reporting respiratory or chest symptoms
- Establish clear communication channels between medical staff, team management, and players
- Develop contingency travel plans for players experiencing health-related delays
- Create integrated practice schedules accommodating late-arriving players
No reproduction without permission：Game Guides Online » DAMWON Nuguri diagnosed with collapsed lung heading into Worlds DAMWON's star top laner Nuguri faces health setback and delayed Worlds arrival after collapsed lung diagnosis