World Cyber Games Yields Gold U.S.A. and Other Countries Product: 2004 World Cyber Games October 10, 2004 -- If you don?t think computer and video games are spectator sports, tell it to the 30,000 fans who crammed in to the Bill Graham Civic Auditorium & Plaza to witness the 2004 World Cyber Games Grand Final. The World?s largest computer and video game tournament drew to a close Sunday night amid fireworks after an intense week of competition between 650 players from 59 countries. With elite players, breathtaking matches, and colossal stakes, the World Cyber Games is proof that the age of e-sports is upon us. Sunday?s Counter-Strike Final featured intense action that brought the crowd to its feet many times as America?s Team3D and Denmark?s Titans battled into triple overtime before 5,000 fans. ?It?s awesome,? said team captain David ?Moto? Geffon of Westlake Village, CA. ?There couldn?t be a better place or a better tournament than the World Cyber Games.? When the tournament dust finally settled, the Netherlands collected the most Gold Medals, winning Unreal Tournament, Project Gotham Racing 2, and in a huge upset over the heavily favored Korean team, the WarCraft III competition as well. Gold medalist Matthew Leto of the U.S.A. took home $20,000, winning his second consecutive Halo title at the World Cyber Games. $412,000 was awarded overall to winners at the 2004 Grand Final. ?The competition this year was the toughest ever,? said Hank Jeong, CEO of World Cyber Games Organizer ICM. ?Every year the World Cyber Games expands to include even more of the world?s best players. This year?s champions should be truly proud of their achievement.? The WCG Gold Medal winners are: Team3D, USA - CounterStrike: Condition Zero Jihoon Seo, Korea - StarCraft III: Brood War Manuel Schenkhuizen, Netherlands - WarCraft III: Frozen Throne Daehan Choi, Korea - FIFA Soccer 2004 Laurens Pluymaekers, Netherlands - Unreal Tournament 2004 Niklas Timmermann, Germany Need for Speed: Underground Arthur Vankan, Netherlands - Project Gotham Racing 2 Matt Leto, USA - Halo The World Cyber Games is a global game culture festival that was founded in 2000 to promote global harmony through e-sports. The event started in 2000, and has been running annually ever since. With the slogan ?Beyond the Game,? and with contestants from 59 countries participating in this year?s event, the World Cyber Games has truly developed into a global game phenomenon with arguably the largest prize amount at stake. The World Cyber Games prides itself on leading the ?Digital Entertainment Culture.? -Red Dawg, GameVortex Communications AKA Alex Redmann Related Links: World Cyber Games Info 2004 World Cyber Games Results