Jensen

Originally from Denmark, Nicolaj “Jensen” Jensen is one of the most well-known players in the North American LCS. He is regarded for his impeccable decision making and mechanics, both which allow him to rival and overwhelm other top tier talents in NA.

Jensen had originally been permanently suspended due to doxing and toxicity, both in and out of competitive games. However, the ruling was overturned two years later, allowing him to be picked up by Cloud 9 as their starting mid laner later on as he demonstrated his skill, and desire to reform.

nicolaj-jensen-team-liquid-league-of-legends

© LoL Esports

Journey with Cloud9

Having gotten unbanned and picked up by Cloud9, one of the biggest gaming organisations in the world, Jensen truly reformed and rebuilt a great reputation. Initially when Jensen had been signed by Cloud9 as their mid laner, many were sceptical considering he was responsible for filling the shoes of another high profile player, Hai. However, Jensen quickly gained the support of fans with not only his in-game ability but personality in interviews. That said, his confident personality may sometimes backfire, as shown in Worlds where Jensen tweeted he could not “wait to clap faker”, before getting solo killed multiple times.

Having signed with Cloud9 for over three years as their starting mid laner, Jensen has had his own fair share of success. 2018 was an amazing year for both Jensen and Cloud9, the team taking out second place in the Summer split and playoffs, and remarkably placing 3rd-4th in the 2018 League of Legends World Championships.

Picked up by Team Liquid

After a stunning 2018, Jensen was signed by Team Liquid, the reigning champions of the NA LCS Summer split and Summer playoffs. Jensen quickly settled with the other players on Team Liquid, the roster being fully stacked with top tier talent. 2019 looks to be a great year for Team Liquid, going undefeated in the first two weeks of the Spring split.

Previous Report: 

Jensen Domestic Career

2013-2014

Nicolaj “Jensen” Jensen started his career under the name of Incarnati0n. He was a promising mid laner entered the Season 3 EU LCS qualifiers as a part of Team Solo Medbi. Unfortunately, the team was disqualified from the tournament, and Jensen himself was banned indefinitely for abusive behavior and DDoS threats.

For 2 years, Jensen kept playing the game on alternative accounts, trying to prove that he improved his attitude. During this time, he coached the EU LCS team, SK Gaming, but couldn’t join them at the 2014 World Championship because of his punishment. Afterward, Riot announced that coaches would have to be officially recognized by the company. Jensen’s suspension made it impossible for him to qualify for the position.

2015

His ban was finally lifted on May 11, 2015. Jensen instantly received an offer from Cloud9 and joined them in the NA LCS. But the 2015 Summer Split was nothing short of disastrous for him. He came in place of Cloud9’s main shot caller, Hai, but there was no way that a rookie could fill his shoes. C9 struggled to adapt to their new mid laner and had to bring Hai back, this time in the jungle position. With his help, the team managed to salvage its split and qualify for the Gauntlet.

Cloud9 went on to reverse-sweep Gravity Gaming and Team Impulse before scoring a 3-1 victory against Team Liquid in the finals and qualifying for Worlds. This performance was later dubbed the Miracle Run, and Jensen received two MVP titles for these matches.

2016

After several roster moves, C9 entered the 2016 NA LCS Spring Split with new vigor. But even though they performed well in the regular season, they fell to TSM in the first round of playoffs. They came back even stronger in summer and went on to defeat Team EnVyUs and Immortals in the playoffs before losing 1-3 to TSM in the finals. Once again, Cloud9 had to play through the Gauntlet to qualify for the World Championship. Fortunately, they faced the same opponents in Team EnVyUs and Immortals, so Cloud9 had no issues finding victory.

2017

The 2017 NA LCS season had Jensen playing at his peak. His mechanics and laning were already top-tier, but now his opponents had to tread lightly because a single mistake against him could cost them the game. Cloud9 finished the regular season in second place, right behind their biggest rival, TSM.

At this point, these teams were so dominant that no one was surprised when they met again in the finals. With Jensen playing his A-game for the entirety of the 5-game series, everything came down to a single mistake. He overstepped his limits in a key teamfight, and TSM jumped at the opportunity to punish his misstep and win the game. Another NA LCS trophy was stolen from under C9’s nose.

In summer, Cloud9 lost some steam but still manage to qualify for the playoffs. They fell in the first round to Team Dignitas and had to go to the Gauntlet where they defeated CLG to qualify for another World Championship.

Jensen International Tournaments

2015

Jensen’s first international tournament was the 2015 World Championship. After a shaky domestic showing, Cloud9 entered the event as underdogs. But they put up a fight in groups and narrowly missed out on qualifying for the knockout stage. Afterward, Cloud9 went to IEM Cologne where they lost 1-2 to H2K Gaming.

2016

The team bounced back at the 2016 World Championship by securing a 3-3 record in groups and becoming the only North American team to enter the knockout stage. Unfortunately, their Quarterfinals opponent—Samsung Galaxy—dismantled C9 with a 3-0 score.

2017

For the 2017 World Championship, Cloud9 had to go through the Play-In stage because they were the third seed from North America. Jensen performed exceedingly well against mid laners from wildcard regions, and C9 qualified for the Main Event without any difficulties. There, they finished the group stage in second place, once again becoming the only NA LCS team to reach the Quarterfinals. Unfortunately, this was the end of the line for them, and C9 lost in a hard-fought series against Team WE.