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| Sydney Wood is the first female esports athlete to play in the history of the BRICS Esports Championships. |
Once again the Russian Esports Federation (ReSF) plays host to the BRICS Esports Championships. The 2025 BRICS Esports Championships shall be held from 31 May 2025 to 1 June 2025.
After a day of journeying, Mind Sports South Africa’s Protea Esports Team for Tekken 8 has completed the journey from South Africa to Russia.
In mid afternoon, MSSA’s Protea Esports Team for Tekken 8 landed at Moscow International Airport and was met by Russian Esports Federation’s advisor to ReSF President, Mr. Constantine Surkont.
MSSA’s Protea Esports Team for Tekken 8 visibly showed no signs of travel weariness and quickly moved off to their lodgings to ready themselves for the gruelling schedule that lies ahead.
The team is bivouacked in the modern Park Tower Hotel which is known for its services for tourists, businessmen, sportsmen, youth, school children and families will be home to the South African Protea Esports Team for Tekken 8 while in Russia. The hotel boasts of every amenity and is famous for its breakfasts.
The Event program for the event isas follows:
- Arrivals: May 28 and 29
- Drawing lots, media-day, practicing*: May 30
- Groups: May 31
- Play-offs: June 1
- Departures: June 2 and 3
The Protea Esports Team for Tekken 8 consists of esports athletes that have not yet been exposed to international competition. Nevertheless, both players are from the PlayBell stable in Cape Town where they have been exposed to Jonathan Brown who had represented South Africa at the 2021, 2022, and 2023 IESF World Championships (WEC)
MSSA’s Protea Esports Team for Tekken 8 is unique in that it consists of Luay Khan, from Durban, who is head and shoulders the best Tekken 8 esports athlete in the country. As his comrade-in-arms, Luay has Sydney Wood from Cape Town who is without doubt the best female Tekken 8 esports athlete in South Africa.
Not since Lyrene Kűhn (WEC12, WEC13), Morizane Boyes (WEC14) and Charlize Seremak (WEC19), has a woman represented South Africa in the Tekken esports title. Now Sydney Wood steps up center stage to represent South Africa in the Tekken esports title. Not only that, but Sydney breaks all glass ceilings as she becomes the first woman to ever play in a BRICS Esports Championships. Not only that, but Sydney has her work cut out for her against an all male field from 22 countries in the BRICS Esports Championships.
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| l to r: Sydney Wood, Luay Khan, and Johan van Breda |
The team consists of:
MSSA President, Colin Webster, stated, “MSSA is extremely proud of the 2025 team and is confident that the team will represent South Africa with honour, dignity and pride”.
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