One month has passed since the eSports Award 2007 found his last winners. Everybody in the audience enjoyed the show and the speeches. Especially Johnathan 'Fatal1ty' Wendel held an overwhelming speech about his time in eSports, his goals and the things he saw. We would like to give everyone who missed the ceremony the opportunity to read what Fatal1ty said this special evening.

If you want to enjoy a 11 minutes video of the ceremony just have a look at GamingJunky.com.

Johnathan 'Fatal1ty' Wendel:

“Thank you eSports awards! Thank you to all the leagues who supported me on the way: CPL, WCG, ESWC, WSVG, QuakeCon and their parent company id Software and Championship Gaming Series and all the other leagues I've been fortunate enough to play in! Also a big thanks to the sponsors of these events. My living as a professional gamer would not be possible without you. When I was 4 years old and playing my first Nintendo game "Ikari Warriors" I had no idea that 22 years later I would be standing here tonight. At 18 I had a gentleman's agreement with my father that if I didn't win any significant money at my first professional competition, I would go back to University FULL TIME. One Wednesday in October, I got in the car and drove eight hours from my home in Kansas City, MO to Dallas, TX, knocked on my friends door and asked if I could crash at his place for a week or so and train with him, and he said "yes". I entered the CPL tournament - qualified - and won 3rd place, winning $ 4,000 at my first-ever professional tournament. I was very thrilled about doing so well at my first tournament but I knew if I could continue to push at this more seriously, I could definitely become a world champion. So I went back and told my father I was going to continue it as a hobby, training 50 to 70 hours per week while working part time and going to university part time. The hobby quickly became my profession and my passion! Why is gaming my passion? Gaming is my passion because it allows me to show my fierce competitiveness. Whether I'm playing from home, a hotel room in Europe, a tournament in South Korea or Los Angeles, gaming requires all of us to show up, be the best we can be, not just as gamers - but as human beings. Gaming challenges us but also accepts us for who we are. While playing online if you're good, millions of people all over the world take note of you. It's an awesome and humbling experience. I remember going to my very first tournament in 1999 and it seemed like everyone was talking about my style (how I played the game). Players from here in Germany were speaking about me like I was the biggest thing, when at the same time I was in awe of them! Why is gaming so popular world wide? Gaming is played by millions of people all over the world every day. I believe it is so popular because of the interaction with so many people, we would never been able to touch or talk with our entire lives without the internet. I am very fortunate as well to now have so many friends around the world! My friends here in Germany, to other countries in Europe, all the way to Asia and back to America. This would not be possible without the sport. When I entered professional gaming, I had three goals. My first goal was to travel overseas to play a video game. That occurred within the first few months of my professional career. The second goal was to become a world champion which I also accomplished that in my first overseas competition. The third goal was to become a role model for other gamers! Gaming is everything to me. It is my passion, it is my life and in a way, it is my extended family. In a family, one looks after the other members of their family. In my way, I've tried to do this by setting a standard that shows gamers how to practice, play and go about their lives. I've tried to help them not only build their skills as gamers but also their talents as business people. I recognized in a way that I've become an ambassador of gaming and because of this I have a responsibility to the sport and to my fellow gamers. In closing, I'm only 26, I hope to live a loooong lifetime so perhaps I can win another lifetime achievement award! But if you ask me; will you keep playing games for the rest of your life? Most definitely! Thank you.“

Thanks to Livia "Liefje" Teernstra of gamingjunky.com for the transcript.