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interview Max Lundqvist scenario Paintfest review Drom 1.5 «Who has done more and won more than me?» Oliver Lang interview millennium BASILDON N.º 11 | September 2014

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The European Paintball Magazine

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01

interview

Max Lundqvist

scenarioPaintfest

reviewDrom 1.5

«Who has done more and won more than me?»

Oliver Lang

interview

millennium

BASILDON

N.º 11 | September 2014

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03

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04 index

index06–07Team

11Editorial

12-13News

14–15HighligthTony Meister

16–17ProfileMoritz Berndtson

18–21CompetitionNederlandse Paintball League

24-29InterviewMax Lundqvist

30-39Gallery

40-55MillenniumBasildon

58-60The New LegacyZane KJ Mañasco

62-79InterviewOliver Lang

30-39Gallery

16-17ProfileMoritz Berndtson

42-57MillenniumBasildon

18-21Nederlandse P. League

24-29Interview Max Lundqvist

62-79Interview Oliver Lang

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05index

80-88Miss GRIP

90-94ScenarioPaintfest

96-100ScenarioBig Game 13

102-105ReviewDROM 1.5

42-57MillenniumBasildon

102-105Review - DROM 1.5

110-112Review - RM-1

96-100ScenarioBig Game 13

90-94ScenarioPaintfest

106-109ReviewMacDev Shift2 Barrel Kit Black

110-112ReviewRM-1

114Thanks

80-88Miss GRIP 62-79

Interview Oliver Lang

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06 team

PEDRO SIMÕES GRIP Magazine’s pho-tography editor. He’s also an accredited photojournalist.

RITA PEREIRA GRIP Magazine’s Art Director. She works as a professional graphic designer.

DANIEL TEIXEIRAGRIP Magazine’s kid. He is the man in charge of our website and all bits and bytes.

ANDRÉ FARIAThe scenario man. If we’re talking about camouflage, gun replicas and lots of fun, then that’s where he is.

ZANE KJ MAÑASCOIf he is not shooting, he is pulling some serious magic on the computer. the Design madmen and genius together in a unique guy!

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HUGO BETTENCOURTIf there is something new in our sport, he already know it. The news man!

team

DUARTE GOMESThe mechanic in charge. Very few understand paintball markers and accesso-ries as well as he does.

SIEGIE KELLYWho better to help out than one of the RSH designers? Any subject related to image, he’s your man!

ANDRÉ GOMESOne of the “kids” of the team. Dominates the English language. and helps us translate a few thousand words per issue.

RITA RISCADOOur «Irishwoman» translates and puts up with us and all our doubts. Without her, you simply wouldn’t understand us!

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GRIP – Paintball Magazine or André Filipe Sobreira Garrido are not responsible for the content of the ads nor for the accuracy of the characteristics and features of the products and/or goods advertised. Their veracity and accordance with reality are fully and exclusively the responsibility of the advertisers and advertising agencies or companies.

IT IS STRICLY FORBIDEN TO COPY TEXTS AND IMAGES BY ALL MEANS

Property of André Filipe Sobreira Garrido NIF: 227215290

Legal address: Rua General Taborda Nº3 - 1º 1070-137 Lisboa

ERC Registration Nº 126231 Frequency: Quarterly

DIRECTOR EDITOR

MARKETING ADVERTISEMENT PHOTOGRAPHY

André Garrido ([email protected])André Garrido ([email protected])Carla Peixoto ([email protected])GRIP - Photo Services

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editorial

Everyone works with goals! I don’t know anyone who doesn’t set a goal to achieve and become better and better. If you look at young players they want to kill more opponents than all the others in the field; that was just their first goal… to be better!

For us it’s no different! We want to better, not better than our «competition», because those we see as colleagues, but better than ourselves. And if we need to think of one unique player that is better than anyone else, you know the name: Oliver Lang.

It was the most difficult task we had since day one. Interview the person that is the most photographed, followed and interviewed player by everyone. What could we do that was different than the rest? We spent many hours reading all the interviews, watching videos and acquiring all the information we can get to give you what we consider the best live interview made to «Ollie».

If this interview wasn’t enough for you, you can still read what happened in Basildon with all the drops of rain and shy sun or in one of the newest European leagues – NPL.

In the scenario section we passed by two amazing games and told our thoughts about them. I’m talking about Paintfest and SBG13.

This issue still has another awesome interview with Maxs Lundqvist, the nicest and most talented paintball player in the whole world and owner of one the coolest brands of our market – BunkerKings.

And as usual you can keep an eye on all the reviews of the novelties. This time we tested the RM-1, the new marker from Valken with a twist innovation; the new DROM 1.5 and the barrels from MacDev – Shift2.

And if you still want more just try to not fall in love for our Miss GRIP.

By André GarridoDirector GRIP

editorial

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DYE Boomstick

The new Dye Glass Fiber Boomstick features eight different colors and two bore sizes (.688 and .684). The tip of the barrel was anodized with the matching color. Has an Autococker thread and its length is about 38.1 centimeters. The back length was also optimized to 20.32 centimeters so it can reach high velocity before it reaches the front barrel.

Shaft 4 black

GI Sportz Bags

For your old Shaft 4 barrel, Planet Eclipse released a new Shaft 4 black front tip that will increase the accuracy, efficiency and overall performances from the old one. It will only fit on old Shaft 4 back barrels.

GI Sportz have released a new set of bags for your everyday use such as traveling going to your practice or competition fields. You have different sizes and shapes so you can chose what better suits you. They were all built to be lightweight, durable and practical.

Geo 3.5

Planet Eclipse had an early release with the new Geo 3.5. They have made upgrades on the bolt system make it softer on the paint, high air efficiency and an increased noise reduction and also adopted the GSL bolt release style. The new IV Cure bolt was also released for old Geo versions so you can increase the performance of any Geo.

VIO Contour

The new VIO Contour is coming soon with an extended version, this one will be more flexible and

with a larger facemask for bigger chin protection. Some changes were also made to the current VIO line such as a new lock and strap system which can be upgraded on

your old VIO.

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Art Chaos

Morph Fire

Ninja Bottles

Art Chaos have a long history of playing in European events like Millennium and CPS and this year they decided to compete seriously on PSP. After some hard time in the fieds they have won the West Coast Open in Champions Division beating Edmonton Impact by seven to four.

With the new Morph Fire converter you can turn your ego or etek into a bb’s marker

by adapting your barrel. You can hold it the same way you hold your marker, with the same bottle. The main difference is that you won’t need a loader usage since it comes with magazine.

Nowadays people stopped using bottle covers and most of the time they have their bottle out in the open. Because of this reason Ninja released new colorful 77 cubic inch, 4500 PSI super light, you can chose from lime, red and blue colors and they all come with the regulator you want.

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Hi everyone,I have 22 years old, play paintball for eight years and I’m known as Tony

Meister. I’m proudly Portuguese being one of the few representing my country in Millennium with my team - Lisbon Benfica.Last June I was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s lymphoma that is the same saying that I have blood cancer.

Despite the fear and stress of this disease and the six to eight months of treatment that I need to do I’m conformed and mentally focused on fighting every day to return to my normal life.I do not seek fame or pity! This is my way of saying thanks to all our community that supported me in the initial moments, the most difficult to overcome.

In the most difficult days all the pictures of shaved heads, all the messages and all the gifts that some teams gave it to me and I took with me even to my chemotherapy will give me the strength to continue until the end, until the recovery!For now I live calmly one day at time, training at the gym, eating to not become flesh and bone and watching all the paintball videos and webcasts that I can catch.

Soon I will be in a field stronger than ever because when someone takes out what we love and ambition we return with more will and sturdier.

#WeAreAllTogether #FightAgainstBloodCancer #Linfoma2014

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Text: André Garrido

Moritz Berndtson

Moritz, or Mo as all friends call him, is one of the captains of the sensation team of this season – Comin At Ya.

He started playing 11 years ago and after three years he decided that the Millennium Series was the place he wanted to be; and since that day he has never missed one event.

If the Millennium wasn’t enough he still plays in many other countries such as France, Belgium, Czech, Switzerland and of course his hometown Germany.

After the second place in the overall ranking of SPL last year, it isn’t strange that Mo considers the promotion to CPL the highest moment of his career, only surpassed by the 4th place at Puget this year. If he has to point out another significant moment of his career it will be the events that he played for his country with his brother at his side.•

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Moritz Berndtson

NICKNAME Mo

DATE OF BIRTH26-10-83

OCCUPATIONPlant Manager

STARTED PLAYING IN 2003

PLAYS FOROffenburg Comin at Ya

INTERNATIONAL EVENTSAll Millennium Series events since 2006

EVENTS WONMillennium Series - Paris 2011

BIGGEST ACHIEVEMENT IN PAINTBALLPromotion to CPL and 4th place in CPL

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Netherland is stepping up its game with their own European tournament. GRIP has been there to cover all of it.Text: Maikel van Maasacker

Nederlandse Paintball

LeagueIt all began eight years ago with someone who started playing paintball in the woods, a place where the roots of many paintballers lay. This particular paintballer had a vision of a competitive side of this beautiful sport in Netherland. Something which seemed so far away. After a few years of planning, meeting new people and personally growing in the sport he finally had enough knowledge to start his own tournament. Five years ago on this day he announced the first edition of the NPL, a small tournament with a few Dutch teams competing to be the best in Holland. Growing every year, not only in number of teams and his son stepping in the family business but also developing the tournament to a now European level. Five years later we have a two day, four events a year tournament with different divisions. I think we can

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say that his vision is completed. The paintballer that I am talking about

is Perrie van Maasacker. The NPL is an EPBF and Nederlandse

Paintball Bond certified tournament, sponsored by Planet Eclipse, Anthrax, Paintball de Naaldhof and Paintball Supplies. Also every edition is covered by one of the best Media partners, RSH-Media. Existing out of two formats – M3 and M5 – and three different divisions – Amateur, Challengers and Pro – the NPL is the largest tournament in Holland. We

have 28 teams competing to be the best every year.

Not only did the tournament grew through the years, we have also seen a

lot of new teams training every weekend to compete. The NPL has always been a great learning environment for teams.

NPL is EPB and NPB certified, sponsored by four brands

and covered by RSH Media.

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PRO1. Amsterdam Heat2. Badboys Oss3.Badboys Oss 2

CHALLENGERS 1. Next Level Nijmegen2. Wolfpack HD3. Amsterdam Anarchy

AMATEUR1. Rejects2. Old Bastards3. Soultakers

M3 1. PDN Factory2. Proball Factory 13. Blackhawks

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Proving to belong in the European top by not only having professional systems, Euro-Referee’s and everything a professional tournament needs, the NPL has also created top international level teams. Examples are Amsterdam Heat and Badboys Oss competing on the Semi-Pro (SPL1) level at the Millennium Series.

Last week we had the last leg of the 5th edition. We have seen existing teams step

up their game, new teams proving that they have talent and others stepping it up to the Semi-Pro level. •

The NPL has always been a great learning environment for teams.

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Max Lundqvist

He probably has the biggest smile in the whole paintball scene and is the owner of the next cool brand in our industry.

Max Lundqvist lets us know what’s going on with him!

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GRIP: We heard that you are almost as famous at golf as you are at paintball?ML: Haaa not famous… but I try really hard. I practice probably much harder at golf than paintball. (Laughs)

GRIP: Now, more seriously. You were one of the main faces of the most famous team in Europe – Joy Stockholm. Why did the team break up?ML: It was just too much time away from home. We played more than 15 events for a couple of years and we had to practice one or two weekends before most of the events so we were gone every weekend. The sponsorships went down a little bit, the teams we were playing against were playing better and better and all those things together forced us to break the team up. They’re strong enough reasons to not have so much fun anymore… And… Aaannnddd one or two bad reffing calls. (Laughs)

GRIP: After many gossips and facebook fans pages asking for your return, Joy rejoined paintball in Sweden. Is this just for fun or will we see you in the Millennium with Joy next year?ML: It’s just for fun. Unless we find a rich oil sheikh that can sponsor us and pay us for the training time to compensate for all the time we spend away from home, it’s going to be hard to do it. So no Joy coming back! If an oil sheikh is reading this: please try to contact me on facebook.

GRIP: Is the core of the team the same players from the past?

Max Lundqvist

He probably has the biggest smile in the whole paintball scene and is the owner of the next cool brand in our industry.

Max Lundqvist lets us know what’s going on with him!

Text: André Garrido

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ML: We have six out of the seven players that played in San Diego when we won the NPPL. It’s the core! It’s awesome!

GRIP: In 2011 you took a sabbatical year. Why?ML: I was very close to quitting paintball because of the two bad years with Joy that almost killed my pleasure of playing paintball. I only played two Millennium

events that year and the last event I won with team Comin At Ya in SPL in Paris and that really lit my fire again.

GRIP: In 2012 you returned to play alongside Scorpion Milano. How did this invitation appear?ML: That was one of the reasons I kept playing because at the Paris event they approached me, asking if I want to be their

«Joy is not coming back!»

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playing coach. That gave me the chance to come back to paintball and make it more as a profession and not something that I just do for fun. That definitely helped a lot on coming back to paintball.

GRIP: With all due respect for Scorpion, you are a CPL player… why not play in any of the CPL teams?ML: Time! Time is the reason! With all the pro teams you have to take at least two weekends before each tournament and I don’t have that time any more. I have a son and got married one week before my son was born, so I don’t have enough time to do that. I need to make sure he grows up and becomes another Maximus of paintball. (Laughs)

GRIP: More recently you revamped the brand Bunker Kings with some cool innovation products. Tell us about this project.ML: My brother and I started in 1999 back in New York when I lived there with him and I have been making paintball products for HK Army and for some other brands in the last four years. So this summer my brother asked me if I want to start it up again with him. I thought about it for a couple of days and I realized what a great idea it was. I did not realize how much work it was going to be but it has been fantastic. Working until two o’clock in the morning for many, many, many nights in the past year. It has been tough but now that we see the results and the products are out there, it was all worth it. And the people that are employed, they

«Joy almost killed my pleasure of playing paintball.»

should never complain about working too much… neeveeer!

GRIP: You designed a new type of harness, what is the big difference?

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ML: It’s a harness that is completely strapless. There have been packs

completely strapless before but you always had to use two hands to load it

up with pods, ours you can load and unload with one handed and one step action. After

two years of research I have found a way to combine three different materials in the right away to make it possible to

push the pod up into the main tunnels and stay there. It was so much work… and now that the product is ready I was super scared to release it. It has been released in Bitburg and it seems that the reception has been really good. I’m very excited!

GRIP: Any new product coming soon?ML: Many! Many in the works. We just have to make the smart moves and come out with the right ones because in the beginning we have to be very smart with investments. Hopefully we will have new releases for the World Cup in Florida, Millennium’s last event in Paris and World Cup Asia.

GRIP: If you have the opportunity to design the thing that will revolutionize paintball, what would it be?ML: It would be the perfect training facility for paintball where people can train like any other sports. With super nice locker rooms, gyms… I guess they have one of these things in Russia but I would like to make it possible for teams to practice a lot without wasting all the money in the world and bring up Swedish paintball again… and my own paintball team. It would be very cool! •

«Scorpion Milano gave me the chance to make paintball more like a profession.»

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«Bunker Kings will have new releases for World Cup, Paris and World Cup Asia.»

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By Siegie Kelly

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Basildon looks like it’s lost all of its power and glamour. Even the shops won’t take gear to sell. Nonetheless, the paintball we saw there was the best we’ve seen in Europe.

basildon

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Basildon looks like it’s lost all of its power and glamour. Even the shops won’t take gear to sell. Nonetheless, the paintball we saw there was the best we’ve seen in Europe.

Text: André Garrido

basildon

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There are events that are landmarks of the Millennium, and Basildon is without a doubt one of them. At the beginning of each season there are two spots that are always guaranteed, Bitburg and this event on the island.

The location is still in the famous Barleylands farm, about an hour from London. This farm provides one of the most idyllic sceneries that paintball has seen, where all around us fauna and flora thrive. All around, everything is literally green and alive; no wonder this is such a prime location for Europe’s biggest event.

millennium

But if the United Kingdom was once the vanguard of European paintball, it seems that this has drastically changed, with players and major brands dragging this reputation through the mud. Compared to Bitburg, there are 25% less teams involved in this event only, which in the overall team count shows a 17% drop.

Worse than that is the fact that brands aren’t satisfied with their sales at this British event. The best example is how DYE did not take a single piece of equipment to have on sale. We should remind you that DYE left their UK offices in exchange for their German

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enough seating for all those attending the tournament.

Regarding the layout of the shops, it seems to us that things were better

this year. There was a central corridor leading from the fields and the respective stands; the «forgotten» shops at the end of this layout must have certainly left this event with

a loss.The field’s layout was the

same as last year’s, with the «minor» fields on the left and the more requested ones with stands for the public on the right.

We miss the stands with the rain

headquarters. Yet this is not an isolated case, as this was repeated with some other brands.

Yet this place, all controversy aside, is still one of the best to play paintball in Europe. There are small details that stand out: the large camping ground right outside of the event; the large parking lot for all players and spectators; all these make this event irreplaceable.

It was nice to see a good bar at the event this year, that besides the typical burgers, also sold healthier options for the more athletic players and provided

Basildon provides one of the most idyllic sceneries that paintball has

seen!

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covers that were commonly seen as the English events, but these ones were simply bizarre: the stands beneath your seat, where you would rest your legs against, instead of being made of normal metal, were of transparent acrylic, allowing people to see the «dismembered» legs of the first rows walking around. You can’t explain how strange it was to see this at the time.

Although there wasn’t any stereotypical English weather this time, its threat was felt, as strong pelts of rain were felt throughout the weekend. Yet when the sun was out, you could really feel it bearing down on you, a pleasant change for this event.

Basildon gave us a very aggressive

layout, very different from those we’ve seen this year. It was a fast and fluid format, with many great plays and

bunkering chances all over the field. Although it was mostly traditional

with the snake and dorito sides, there wasn’t a god bunker that controlled all on the field in this layout, which meant that highlights of the

event were seen coming from all sides of the field, even down

the centre.Open Division 2 is still the division

where all the emotions are in the right place. It’s normal to see players stressing out here, as it’s usually the first time they’re walking onto a serious tournament, or others that are there just to have fun or overpower their

SPL2 should change

its name to French League and Co.

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opponents. One thing is for sure, it’s in this division that you can see what our sport is all about: fun, adrenalin, and the hint of potential world class players.

In a four event series, the third event is usually the most decisive for many teams to go up a division or not. OD2, being the last division, doesn’t have this overbearing pressure as the division above has open entry as well and without any threat of relegation, all are playing for the fun of the sport.

Nonetheless, there are some that still come to win, and, in the true OD2 spirit, it’s always a wild card that comes along and takes the trophy, making the overall rankings even more complicated to predict. First timers Sneaky Snorkels came to steal the show in Basildon, keeping this division’s tradition.

In second came Members who after a disastrous Bitburg event managed a fourth place overall, leaving them the chance to

millennium

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dream of a podium place. In third, both in Basildon and overall, were Insidious who on their last day didn’t let Pirate breathe, nailing them down with no points lost. Although the results weren’t in favour of Whazzup and Slamdancers in Basildon, they still stand in first and second respectively in the overall.

In Open Division 1, we can start to see that some teams are taking the game a little bit more seriously. Some even too much!

Although they started the season with a disastrous seventh place, Indecence managed a first in Bitburg and decided to do the same in Basildon to show their determination to win in this sport. This first place has guaranteed them the first place overall. In second place, also for the second time, came Low Life who recovered quickly from their 13th in Bitburg, staying only four points behind their second place overall. The third position in Basildon was given to the only

Lithuanian team – Diasporas. It is important to note that there are

two Spanish teams in this division that, although paintball is a small and weak sport in their nation, were battling as hard as any other to show their worth in the international scheme. Compared to their

neighbouring country – Portugal – a nation that has all the potential

to become a powerhouse in international paintball, have only placed two teams in the whole of Millennium.

Poison Ivy are still lagging behind last year’s

performance, although we could already see some good plays

starting to happen. They are currently in 10th place, 34 points from ninth, which makes it very unlikely that they will be rising in the rankings. We sincerely hope that they don’t take this bad season as a sign to quit.

We would also like to highlight FL Charms’ performance in this event who, after a 24th finish in Bitburg, managed

DYE left their

UK offices and did not take a single piece of equipment

to have on sale.

1ON1 has been the highlight of the Millennium this year. After «Ollie» Lang’s and Kniazev’s victories, everyone was excited to know who would be taking this event’s trophy. The 64 places were reserved at lightning speed, with many players having to resort to a waiting list. After ten rounds, two Tontons – Frank Chambom and Kevin Coulm – fought for the trophy od the best player in Basildon. Victory smiled upon Kevin, who for a long time had been warning us he’d be taking it home.

1 ON 1

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to reach Poison Ivy with an eleventh finish.

This rise of the female teams is excellent, especially when they left eight male teams in their wake, who find it hard to lose against women.

SPL2 should change its name to French League and Co. 13 of the 25 teams are French! So it doesn’t come as a surprise that a French team was in the TOP3. RedBall won their first place I Basildon and hit second place overall, with the same score as Vienna United.

In this division there are plenty of changes in the ranked positions of teams, but the point differences are very small. There isn’t a favourite team right from the start, but Fighter Pro-Shar are without any doubt the most stable

team and the one with the best conditions to take the trophy home. But we are talking about paintball… when there are thousands of paintballs flying around, there aren’t any guaranteed victories.

What we can see though is that their second place in England

left them 28 points behind the two teams that are currently sitting in second.

As we have said several times before, SPL1 is where

you can see the real level of European paintball. Unlike SPL2,

this division has one clear favourite winner. If we had to bet all our life savings on one team it would most definitely be Hulk Kiev who are blazing ahead in first, with 54 points on the second place. This

difference does allow for Amsterdam Heat to go

The layout was very

aggressive, very different from

those we’ve seen this year.

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ahead in the overall, however first place will be guaranteed for Hulk Kiev if they achieve anything above 13th place.

Apart from these powerhouses of SPL1, none of them won first place in this event. In fact, first and third were taken by Ducks and Drammen Solid respectively. Second place in Basildon went to Hulk, who for the first time didn’t win the event.

Third place overall is held by MLKings who underperformed in Basildon, barely keeping themselves afloat. In Basildon they didn’t get any further than ninth.

Once again we want to praise a Spanish team – FiveStar – that fought long and hard to become not just a great team but a fearful name. Yet even with their heavyweight players (Nicky Cuba, Damian Ryan and Kevin Rudolph) they were unable to pass 14th, destroying an otherwise good season.

CPL is going crazy! On one hand we have the lack of competitiveness amongst the big sharks, and on the other the battle between Impact and Houston Heat has been scorching hot on the fields.

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First, the sharks. The current European Champions – Tontons – are far from what they used to be. Art Chaos are also unrecognisable, currently residing the middle of the ranking. On the other hand Nexus, one of the few teams that has been in CPL since the start, is running the risk of being relegated. More interestingly enough is the denominator for both of these large upsets: the moves of Tonton and Nexus players, Axel Gaudin and Clint Moore, to Art Chaos.

This confusion has made it possible for others to show their true colours. And regarding this we have no doubt that Polar Bears, even with all their star players, have been the true underdogs in this division, yet managing two podium places. We also have to mention Breakout Spa that went from the

middle of the table to fourth place overall. Another team that has been impressive is Comin At Ya, who although their playing quality has slowly been deteriorating, have shown a great level of game skills and mentality. We must remind you that this

team has been in CPL for only one year and is currently in sixth.

Two teams, non-Europeans, haven’t been mentioned yet and they have been playing like mad men, simply decimating all opponents. We

are talking about Houston Heat and Impact. The first team is

one in its rebuilding stages, coming from the US with the help of Ryan

Moorhead, Chad George, Ronnie Dizon and Montressor, just to mention a few of their biggest stars. Impact,a mix of Canadian and American players, have had the most perfect game style we have seen in the

When there are thousands of paintballs

flying around, there aren’t any

guaranteed victories.

One of the most proud moments of any sport is having the chance to play for your own nation. In Basildon this was one of those moments where 16 teams of fiercely proud players played each other to win the biggest trophy of the World in our sport.

Unfortunately the Millennium is organised around the teams and not the nations, and many players refuse to participate in this cup so they don’t harm their team’s standing. This playing interest isn’t shared by much of the crowd who see this title as a secondary one at best.

The big winners this year were the French who were practically running unopposed, even in their final against Russia, the former champions. In third place came Germany and fourth Great Britain.

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past seasons. Their roster is insane with players like Dave Bains, Justin Cornell and Justin Rabackoff shining in each point straight out of the break.

The battle for first place has become progressively more complicated with Houston Heat not going to the final in Bitburg, only managing a fourth place. In Basildon they had to guarantee a first

place to take the spotlight off Impact but unfortunately they caught these bitter rivals in the semi-finals and suffered a tough defeat of 5:2.

Polar Bears were present in the other semi-final after a tough game against Syndicate, which finished at 3:2. As we predicted in the previous edition, Polar Bears were closer to winning a final than

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they imagined. Yet this was not their event, as they

didn’t have the mettle needed to beat Impact in the final.

Impact has therefore won their third first place of this season.

We have seen disasters happen… you just have to look as far back as Dynasty’s lost championship two years ago. But it is practically impossible for Impact to not become European champions. The 60 point advantage they have on every team is enough for them to not have to worry if they get anything above eighth. If we still had some more money to bet

on a team, it would be them for first place.

Paris is almost here, with its magnificent Chantilly castles.

Disney is still remembered with nostalgia, and as we said last year, this exchange isn’t great but it’ll do.

Everything will be at stake in the French capital

and all teams will give their hardest there. This is the event

that is considered the pinnacle of European paintball, where all will go

to play or simply watch the cream of the crop battle against each other.

The curtain’s up, it’s showtime! •

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It is practically

impossible for Impact to not

become European champions.

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When we started this journey we had three goals: establish a team based on mutual respect and the desire to become better, test our limits and finally play a full season as brothers. As for these results we can safely say this season has been a success so far. For Harca Gandia a win is always the most important aspect, but one based on hard work, never on the idea that we «should» win. So this year has also shown us our limits and where we need to push.

Throughout the season it has been important to establish relationships within and outside the team because as a new family we depend on each other. We appreciate the help from all the teams that have given their time to us, especially Indecence. It is these relationships which have made this season so great for everyone on the team. As we look back we can see that there is still a great road ahead to travel.

We started this series of articles to help any team out there that was trying to get to Millennium or any other major

tournament. So this time we will talk about the importance of preparation for any event. In summer the heat makes it hard to maintain a good training discipline so coming into World Cup and the end of the season it was important to really push the guys to get back into the grind.

Always establish good communication with your players, telling people what to do does not always work, but if they want to do it themselves then you have done

your job properly. Preparation is key so when considering training it’s important to structure it as close to a game situation as possible. Make sure your positions are set and that the training is centred on real game situations; this will give you the best idea of where your team is at.

In Harca we are constantly evaluating each player and also the field. This team was formed by players that want to grow and get better so each point is an opportunity to see what works and what

By Zane KJ Mañasco

we are just getting started

With hard work and the right people around you, anything is possible.

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does not. Always remember that you do not win tournaments in training, making mistakes is good as this will give you a chance to improve.

In every event we have been humbled by every player that has given us advice, in this sport you never stop learning and it’s important to remember that. For us it has also been invaluable to have the support of Empire and Emboscada, they have always made sure we have the right mentality and the best tools. This is the second most important aspect for

the new legacy

any team wanting to make their mark in the Millennium Series. Without the experience and support of a good sponsor it’s almost impossible to really progress in your first year.

As we look back over the last three events, we also look ahead. Each leg of the series has taught us something different, but as a whole we realise that we started the season as hungry as we are finishing it. The off-season is our time to really iron out mistakes and issues. As most teams we have

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that you don’t need special help or pro’s to make you get results. With hard work and the right people around you anything is possible.

So this article is our final preparation for the end of the season. We appreciate

everyone who has helped us along the way. Harca Gandia is more than just a group of guys, it’s about the dream of leaving a mark in this sport.

The road is long, but we love the ride!•

the new legacy

realized that the level in all divisions has improved, there are no easy games. This has been the best lesson for our team because every win or loss is a step forward.

Thinking about each game is the last important aspect of this season. As we prepare for World Cup in Chantilly and also World Cup in Orlando we prepare for every single point. When we began this series of articles it was to offer a look into the work behind establishing a new team and the issues that go with it. We have been lucky to make Sunday Club every single event this season and we hope that any team out there can see

If they want to do it themselves then you have done your job properly.

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You can love or hate him but one thing is certain, all records show that he is really the best player

in the World. Do you want to know why? Read this!

Oliver Lang

Text: André Garrido

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GRIP: You are a paintball player, owner of a restaurant and travel the world teaching paintball. What is your «real» profession?Oliver Lang: I recently found this… I just believe I’m a life artist, you know, an artist of life. There is a German word for this called Lebenskünstler, my mom showed me that. I think this is all just progress and one day I just want to be a great father and great husband. Until then it’s all just progress.

GRIP: When you were young you were in the skate scene. How do you remember those days?OL: I remember being very similar to paintball. Skateboarding obviously way surpasses paintball in the lifestyle and a lot of people are doing it… big industries and big sponsorships. I see paintball very similarly to how skateboarding used to be. We are very tight, kind of a grass roots sport and I kind of like that. I like being the little bit of famous that I’m here and I don’t know if I want to be that famous in the real world like some of these other athletes. I like to get into the nooks and crannies when I travel… and you try to do that when you are famous!

GRIP: Do you think that it will be possible for paintball achieve the same level that skate has nowadays?OL: Yes, I do! I think it’s very possible! I think all the pro players that are playing now, will retire and say: «screw the industry, we’re taking over and doing it ourselves», with good hearted people that know the sport, know how to referee, know

how to run leagues. Right now, we are too busy playing and we all love it so much just playing, but I know for a fact if we all stop, we can get it to that level. And that is probably going to be the next step for Oliver one day, stopping and figuring out how to start a players union, do proper leagues and represent the players a little bit.

GRIP: How were your skills at skateboard?OL: They were of an amateur (Laughs)! I was very young and small so I was kind of limited and the skateboards were big. Imagine a 14 year old pro paintball player, it’s a little difficult, he is limited, he is very small. Maybe he’s fast but the gun is big, they can’t play certain bunkers. It’s the same thing.

GRIP: In many interviews you say that nowadays you are not a professional player. What does this mean?OL: That means I can be better! If my life was to be paid to play, paid to train, do certain exercises like a real professional athlete… If you look at all those professional athletes, it’s a whole different story. We have got to work, we have got to grind, we have got to take our little bit of vacation when we can, when we have it; then squeezing paintball and squeezing practices and it’s all about making lots of sacrifices. It’s not easy by any mean! Everybody who plays at a pro level apart from a few guys that are paid a good amount knows this, most of us don’t get paid very much… or

«I don’t get paid anything, I have to go make money!»

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anything! I don’t get paid anything, I have to go make money! I have to train hard to win that tournaments to get that little bit of cash. It would be a different story if everybody was getting paid hundreds of millions of dollars and then our life would be dedicated to the sport. I know that if I could

be better if I drill five days a week, have one day off and play a tournament, I would

be a heck of a lot better.In other sports, the real pros

have coaches that really understand the sport. They have the offense coaches, defensive coaches, they have exercise coaches and every type of coach you could imagine. They will make you perform better. Everything is done for you, you just need to go out there and make it happen. For us, we’re scrambling to do everything, we are the player, coach, owner, partner, friend and roommate. It’s tough!

GRIP: You left college to play paintball… OL: Hummm! I didn’t go to college (Laughs)! We went to a few classes. We tried to pretend that we were going to college, that was when paintball was kicking in the gear by 2002, 2003.

GRIP: But it was a daring move… probably your mother wants you to continue.OL: My mother was interested in just whatever I was happy, that was nice! I graduated high school and followed the paintball dream. We tried to do school. It wasn’t like: «Let’s do school and try paintball»; it was: «Let’s do paintball and try school». The interesting thing is that the older I get the more I want to learn things so now it’s time to going back to school and take whatever it is that interest me! You’re never done learning! I think you need to travel the world, figure out who you are and what you are doing and then figure out what you want to learn and what you want to put

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your heart into… make that your profession. Hopefully it is something that you enjoy!

GRIP: How many sacrifices did you make for paintball?OL: I’m not going to say that I sacrificed anything but I had to dedicate quite a lot of time to master paintball. I wouldn’t call it a sacrifice because I enjoyed every minute of it but I definitely did sacrifices, maybe not doing other things that I would like to have done like learning an instrument or learning another language…. Which I still can! Now I understand what it takes to become good at something!

GRIP: You’re 31 years, and have played

for 17. On the 1 ON 1 you played with Rubben, a 14 year old kid who beat two pros and won the first point against you. Isn’t it weird to play against kids that are younger than the years you have played?OL: Yeah, that’s interesting to think that when I was winning tournaments he was

just a baby! That is how life is and that’s the progression of it. You got to love that, you got to love kids like that, because I was that kid. We were all that kid. If Rubben sticks with it he can become a pro and he can be the one in my shoes and I can be

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«I’m pretty disappointed with Art Chaos.»

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45 and still shooting Rubben (Laughs).

GRIP: If you could go back 17 years to that day where the little Oliver played his first game. What would you tell him?OL: I would say: «You are in for a wild ride, my friend! Stick with it! Work harder!». I would have told him: «Work harder!»

GRIP: You have seen many changes in our sport: 10Men, 7Men and more recently X-Ball. How did you adapt your game to so many changes during the years?OL: If you want to stay at the top of your game you just have to keep adapting. I watched older players on IronMen not evolve to play 7Man, not evolve to play XBall. Luckily I was in my youth and I could evolve. The difference is just to stick with it, whatever they throw at you, say: «Ok, fine! I’m ready to play it!». You can disagree with some of the evolutionary moves but it’s still evolution.

GRIP: Nowadays XBall is experiencing a new tactical wave. The first days were super-fast and aggressive and now are much more defensive…OL: I would think it goes more like this: two heavyweights going into the boxing ring. You will not see a knock out. You’re going to see 12 rounds and then they go to a decision but then if you see a featherweight fight a heavyweight you will see the featherweight coming up with a bunch of jabs, trying to make everything happen and

the heavyweight just knocks him out. That is kind of what it’s like. You watch players in different teams, with different looks and they really do things they shouldn’t do, it doesn’t work, it looks like they are doing everything right… (Laughs) but really they are doing everything wrong. And then they go on to play on a smarter team where they slowed down and became more controlled, with thought-out games…

GRIP: Don’t you think it’s more boring for the audience?OL: I do and don’t! The thing is that people need to understand the game. I think that the last field (Bitburg) might be boring to watch but you were watching very strategic

paintball minds play the proper tactics to win the game. It just like going into war, you don’t want to throw your guys out there with machines guns not knowing anything, you got to have a tactic and understand how you are going beat them, which way are they going to come, what we’re going to do, what we are not going to do. If you watch an interesting match, it’s like watching chess, it might not be the most exciting thing ever since there is a lot of strategic moves that are happening. If you do understand the game, you know what is going on, it’s interesting to watch. Finally, it was good for teams to learn how to play like teams.

«I told them like a man: “Guys, I’ve been offered to go play on Ironmen and I’m

going take it!” I broke their hearts!»

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GRIP: After some glorious years winning everything that you could win, you unexpectedly left for Ironmen. Eight years have passed, do you think it was the right choice?OL: Yeah! It was absolutely the right choice! It was my next move in my career. Everybody just said: «Oliver, you are the best, you are the best!»; I never thought that I was the best because I always knew that I could be better. And this was my next challenge, to go to the Ironmen, to take a team that wasn’t at the top, take them to the top, make a job out of it and become a face of a company; that is a dream. It worked out perfectly: we won two World Cups, the company enjoyed my time

there, I made some money, got a house and a car. It was wonderful for me! I learned some valuable lessons from that whole experience and now I’m back and it’s just about the love for each other, that’s why we do it!

GRIP: Did you prove what you had to prove?OL: I would say so! Winning two back to back World Cups and a series title… it’s pretty impressive!

GRIP: After this decision of going to

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«Dave Youngblood was very smart. He got me, hurt Dynasty

and made Ironmen much better.»

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Ironmen all your Dynasty old friends stop talking with you. What happened?OL: Yeah (Nervous laugh)! I broke their hearts. It was like breaking up with your girlfriend of many years, and not just one girlfriend but ten. Not many people know this but I didn’t want to call them on the phone, I wanted to be decent, to look them in the eye and in a practice I told them like a man: «Guys, I’ve been offered to go play on Ironmen and I’m going take it!». Most people when they quit teams just send a text message, it’s pretty cowardly. Although it was harsh and brutal they took it well and I actually went to play for Ironmen that day against Dynasty. We didn’t talk for a couple of years, I had dreams of hanging out with them, I saw them in the tournaments hanging out, playing, being goofballs. The guys are hilarious, I don’t want to hang out with any other team ever. Alex and Ryan and everybody have the whole dynamic of what it is, they’re just a really funny, comical and healthy group of people. Not being a part of that made a huge hole in my heart for a long time. Although I made new friends and built a new team and loved every minute of that I still missed the guys.

GRIP: During those two years you said that you didn’t sleep very well. If you could go back what would you do differently?OL: You know… I don’t think I would do anything differently, I think it went perfectly well! Took one year to rebuild, two years of winning and two years where we kind of slacked off. I wish the owner of

the team was a little bit easier to work with in some points; we would have been able to keep Nicky (Cuba), be able to keep some of the players I really liked on the team and I think Ironmen could still be a strong team to this day if those guys were still on the team.

GRIP: Once you said that it was harder to return to Dynasty than leaving. Why?OL: It was a difficult thing because they evolved, I had changed, I had learnt new

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things, I tried to implement new things, they had their own system… More than anything it was the morale boost of coming back. It was a nice thing! I still think we have holes in our game plan and things we do because we are used so much to each other, it’s like a family. We have to figure it out occasionally, especially if we are not doing so well. It’s tough telling somebody: «Hey this is how you’re supposed to do it!» because these guys are World Champions and they have done it too. Everybody’s got their unique way, it’s difficult!

GRIP: Did the contract with DYE end or was it you that decided to leave?OL: It was the end of the contract and it was also my decision! To tell you the truth it wasn’t going to happen again, I wasn’t getting paid the same amount of money, they didn’t think I deserved it, the business wasn’t going to support me. It was good and when we started winning it got ugly!

GRIP: You returned to Dynasty and everything could not have run more smoothly. Four victories in four tournaments. Have you ever thought that it would be so easy?OL: I did because I knew that it was going to be a new invigorating fire lit underneath everybody. We were young again!

GRIP: Was there never a chance for Dynasty to be represented by DYE?OL: There was but Dave Youngblood was very smart about it. He was going to try get

Dynasty but for a little less money he could get me, hurt Dynasty and make Ironmen much better. GRIP: We know that you wanted to repeat all the success that Dynasty had in the

past and win the Triple Crown. This year you gave up Millennium and NPPL as a team. Are you giving up of the dream?OL: No, not all! Is not about winning the Triple Crown, is just about winning each

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«Polar Bears don’t have a rivalry, all the guys are really nice,

nobody hates us… yet…»

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tournament and when you win each tournament all those other things can follow suit. And that is all we are trying to do, just win tournaments! Coming to Europe as Dynasty costs quite a bit of money, it doesn’t make sense to tell you the truth, we don’t really win much. NPPL went terribly

and we just don’t want to play those events anymore. PSP run a good tournament and that is where all the competition is. Europe is tough because we don’t practice for those Europeans tournaments, we just come and play, and some teams play on those fields for months. Our main focus is winning PSP and all those other little events that we enter.

GRIP: Last year you were PSP Top Gun and won the PSP after one chaotic year where all the haters popped up saying bad stuff about you and your team. Winning those titles was a way to shut up some mouths?OL: For sure! For sure! Paintball is such a crazy wild sport, anything can happen. We had some players in the team that weren’t fit and had coaching issues… 14 years of doing this, I think you can allow one bad year!

GRIP: In Millennium you played ten years with Bullets creating a team almost from nothing to a CPL event winner. Do you miss playing with them?OL: Totally! The Bullets were great! Great team, great family! It was a good group, it was my European Dynasty. We just had so much fun, and that is what all about over here. We played a lot of events and we

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put a lot of heart into it, and we put a lot of heart into each time we played. It was about having fun and that is what keeps me going.

GRIP: Your «hate» for the Russians is very public…OL: Yep!

GRIP: …and this year you’re playing with the Polar Bears. OL: Right!

GRIP: How did they convince you?OL: Polar Bears facebooked me and said: «We want to learn the Californian style of play, we are done with the Russian style of play. We want to get two of you guys and get a coach from America and we want to implement what you guys do». I thought that was pretty cool: the Russian mentality, they are very straight-forward, how they think, how they see it. And the California style is more: let’s try that, let’s make some mistakes, let’s have more fun. I think it’s an interesting combination this year. It’s coming along! They are good players! The Russians are without a doubt outstanding players, very technical, they put a lot of work into their mechanical style. With a little more heart and a little bit of finesse these guys could be outstanding players. That what I think about all Russian teams, that with a little cooler understanding of the game, a little more relaxed and not so strict style, I think they will enjoy a lot more and everybody will be a little bit better.

GRIP: They don’t speak English so how do

you communicate in the field?OL: Yeah… it is very difficult! One of the major downsides of the team. We have got some translators. We have learned some Russian words and we have a communication system on the field of bunker names and some certain codes that we all understand. But for the most part we try to make a lot of eye contact on the field and some hand signals.

GRIP: We said in the last issue that Polar Bears could win a final faster than everyone can expect. Do you think it’s possible?OL: I think we have to get over a few

bumps! Everyone needs to believe a little bit in themselves. Without a doubt it’s possible!

GRIP: Don’t you feel like a mercenary, playing with other teams for money?OL: Totally! Completely! But you know, it’s good for a lot of reasons. It’s good for these teams because when I come over and I play for a team I’m not a mercenary. We sit down with them, we give them our system, we show how we do it, what we do and we implement it. We never just come over here been like: «Ok! Where do I go?». You can’t play paintball like that, you have to have a code system. Me coming over and playing these events keeps me on the top. I need

«The pro players will say: “screw the industry, we’re taking over

and doing it ourselves”»

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to come to Europe and play in these events. It keeps me going. It’s just good all around! We don’t make much money, this is our chance to make extra coin and in exchange play on a team and without a doubt it’s a lot of hard work too. It’s worthy all around…

GRIP: In another interview you said that there are plenty of crap teams in CPL. How would you change this?OL: Europe is tough because a lot of players play in Europe and there are a lot of teams, which is great! Nobody has really given these teams the proper tools to become a good team. A lot of teams bought their way in, someone got the available spot, whatever it may be… they don’t practice enough, they might not have the best sponsorships to build the practice, they might not practice with the better teams, they might not do all the proper drills or run the proper practices. And then you get in the Millennium ten teams that are very good and a couple that aren’t so good. And then you have a Canadian and American team that come over here that play really well and for the most part they are on the TOP4 every time. With the exception of Tontons and maybe Art Chaos there just aren’t many other teams that really grind as hard as all the rest of the TOP4 pro teams that are here to make the difference. I just think it’s a lack of education and lack of proper training and proper understanding. If you are playing in the pros you should feel you are at the top of your game and that you will win each time you show up at an event. Most of these teams

say: «Hoo, I don’t know if we could win!», but they would go and play in the pros.

GRIP: Who do you consider your rivals in Europe?OL: Impact is one of the biggest rivals, they’ve beaten us a few times. They are up and up. They get to play paintball professionally, travel, get income so I would say that they are definitely our biggest rivals. Art Chaos should always be a rival, but for some reason they are not putting it together this year. Heat is a good rivalry. For the Polar Bears I don’t think we have a rivalry, we are a pretty new team, all the guys are really nice, nobody hates us… yet…

and we don’t really hate anybody yet. I just want to beat every other team.

GRIP: Are you surprised with the lack of quality of Art Chaos this year?OL: I’m pretty disappointed with them. I don’t know what is going on with them. Fantastic players and I just don’t get it! I know exactly what is going on to tell you the truth but I don’t know if I want to say it… (Long pause) They are trying to implement some new formulas but the old Russian formula of success works, with the five best Russians players playing all the time and every point, those guys are going to beat you majority of the time. But when you try to implement all these new players and try

«I enjoyed every minute of paintball! Now I understand what it takes to become good at something!»

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to build a new team, it’s hard! You got to sit down and you got to play or let the kid (Axel Gaudin) play, I just think they are not used to that mentality. And there is a lot of pressure on them, but pressure should be one of those things that are on your side if you think you are one of the best players in the World because it just forces you to do well.

GRIP: Do you think Fedorov is your greatest rival in terms of fame?OL: Sure! Fedorov is outstanding in every

way, handsome, good-looking, he plays well, he wins quite a bit. You can say he is the European Oliver or I can be the American Fedorov.

GRIP: People think that you and Fedorov are enemies. How is your relationship off the field?OL: Fedorov and I are good friends! We are competitors, I like to beat him, I like to see him lose. I don’t hang out with Fedorov but at the field he is a very great guy, he’s

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always been a good sportsman. That is as far as our relation goes! He plays on that team and I play on this team, and if we ever play on the same team maybe we can become better friends. For the most part you don’t really have great friends on other teams that you haven’t played on the team with.

GRIP: Do you think it will be possible to see both you playing on the same team one day?OL: If Art Chaos wants to pay me millions of dollars, I can go to Art Chaos but I don’t really see that happening.

GRIP: This year you entered the first 1ON1 contest and won it. Did you sign in just to show that you are the best?OL: I like 1ON1, I play a lot of 1ON1, I feel that I’m very strong at it. I noticed that a lot of pro players were scared because ego gets in the way. For me I’m just kind of an idiot, and I just wasn’t thinking about it. Luckily I got a spot from Justin Rabackoff because he was leaving and I wasn’t going to enter since it was full. I wanted to win it because I’ve never had won a 1ON1 before. 1ON1 are always very difficult, even more difficult against some players you don’t know. It felt good to win it and take that title. I haven’t played more of it because I think it’s good to see some other winners. I would like to do a big tournament with all the winners, maybe

I can convince them in the next event.

GRIP: There is some gossip going round that you want to create a circuit with your name. What can you tell us about this?OL: Essentiality yes, one day I will own my own league! I don’t know when, I have a format that I think is very cutting-edge for the growth of paintball, a little bit more economic, a little bit faster, a little bit smaller. It’s just going to be out there one

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day! My plan is to do some work next year, and make some right connections to see where I’m at and eventually one day I’ll get there.

GRIP: You are always being watched, filmed, photographed, asked for autographs for the last 12/15 years. Wouldn’t you like to just come to the field one day and be that guy that no one knows?OL: No! It’s great! Majority of the people who

ask for photos or autographs are real fans and it means a lot to me. You see the joy in their face, you can see the nervousness. I wouldn’t change it, it’s the way that it is, it’s perfect! I wish I wasn’t myself sometimes when I play so the referees couldn’t figure out who I was (Laughs).

GRIP: Isn’t there too much pressure all the time?OL: No! Pressure is good! Pressure means that you are forced into the corner to continue doing well, to succeed.

GRIP: What is the story behind that moustache?OL: You want to know… Ok… The real story is two of my best friends, Brat and Shane, they always have great moustaches and I always was like: «I can’t wait to grow a moustache!». One day I just pushed through on a Movember and grew a little stupid looking moustache and it was so funny and everybody laughed at it.

After I started wearing it for one or two months everybody was still laughing at me. I just realized how funny it is and how you just can’t take yourself too seriously. At the end of the day I just become the funny guy with the little gay moustache. (Laughs).

GRIP: Why number 17?OL: I was 17 when I turned pro.GRIP: And why number 2?OL: I wasn’t feeling 17 anymore! I grew

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up. I have always been a huge fan of Shane Pestana who was number two! I remember it took us about two years of taking second places constantly before we finally won. And once we finally won I realized how important all those second places were. Learning how to lose, you understand how to win.

GRIP: You are always saying that what matters in paintball is the will to win and character. When someone has already won everything where does he go to find the will to keep winning all the time?

OL: It’s difficult because you have won everything! The way and the will and the want to win… I almost do it for other people: for my teammates, for my friends, for my fans; I don’t want to let anyone down. Winning becomes so instinctual, becomes… so… almost effortless sometimes but you put some effort into it. But if everybody was on the same page, had the same mind frame, winning would be pretty simple, and with the dedication behind it, you can do it… a lot! At this point we are there… There are only some little things that stop us from winning!

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GRIP: «Sometimes I have to be an asshole on the field to get the job done». What does this mean?OL: Well, sometimes you got to be an asshole… you got to take the guy down, you got to shoot him a bunch of times, you got to be that wrecking ball. You watch a lot of these players and they are assholes in the field but they get the job done! If you are just the nice guy and you shoot the guy once, you just want to make it smooth and get it on the spot, it doesn’t really get it done! You got to go in there and just take it down! Just make it happen! Sometimes you got to be an asshole that way.

GRIP: What is the title that you’re missing?OL: I don’t know (pauses and laughs)! It’s not about titles anymore, it’s about winning tournaments! Winning tournaments is fuel… titles are titles, you want it, but you want to win tournaments. And if you win these tournaments, the titles will come! Never focus on the title, focus on these tournaments, and whenever you win tournaments several times in your life, it’s like: «Huaaaaaaaaaaaa! Thank God!» (Shows an expression of relief). It’s a sense of accomplishment and then right

back to the drawing board.

GRIP: Are you the best player in the World?OL: Ask yourself that question who has done more and won more than me. We will see when this is all over who the best is but I’m pretty happy where I stand regardless. •

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Photographer: Carlos RodriguesModel: Susana SanchesMakeup: Silvia FerreiraAll gear: Maxs and Bunker Kings

Susana Sanches

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GRIP wanted to take a look at the most wanted European summer Paintball Festival that is run by the NPF, in heart of the UK and tell you everything. Everything happened from the 25th to the 27th of July. Text: André Faria | Photos: Rick Anthony - Paintball Scene Photography

Paintfest

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Established in 1987, the NPF came up with the idea four years ago of building up a summer festival that got together paintball and loads of party time. What started as a small event with about 200 players reached staggering results with more than 1000 players.

As Kerry Mayo, the operations manager at NPF and one of the team of four managers responsible for the Paintfest describes: «We have continued to listen to feedback year after year and have used this to continually improve the game, facilities and special entertainment that makes Paintfest very special.»

One of her most fantastic memories of this event was in 2013: «The weather was very hot and sunny. Then on the Saturday evening there was a huge rainstorm during the player’s party! The whole

thing was crazy and people were dancing around in the rain with umbrellas and ponchos – they just wanted to party!! Crazy times!»

This year the Miltac - Magfed game «Tears of the Sun» was a surprise to the players. It was not for just one but two days of pure magfed madness!

Kerry explains why the change: «Just to attend to this new segment of players and gameplay which has seen a massive growth here in the UK in the last two to three years.»

Players attending Paintfest had three Big Game scenarios to play across the

Paintfest was awarded Best Scenario Site at the UK

Paintball Awards in 2013.

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dancers, it was the biggest party ever! Paintfest offers more than just games,

it is also supported by a huge camping area, a large trade and vendor area, game play packs and maps for all the players, a unique experience with movie set style scenarios and well-designed props, and caterers offering a good choice of quality healthy food. It was without surprise that Paintfest was awarded Best Scenario Site at the UK Paintball Awards in 2013.

Overall what was the audience of players this year? Kerry says: «Paintfest 2014 has grown year on year and 2014 was no exception - we had upwards of 1000 players plus visitors, staff and vendors...we look to be even bigger in 2015.»

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weekend: on Friday the Vietnam scenario, on Saturday the popular Zombies vs. Humans scenario and on Sunday the very famous Diamond Wars. As for extra activities they had inflatables, laser games, an airsoft range, a Megarena for those players that prefer or wanted to try Supair paintball and a Killhouse arena from Task Force Delta who run specialist pistol only sessions.

A very interesting plus for the event was a movie night on Friday, where players could vote for the best of four chosen films on Facebook, prior to the event, and chill out in the party zone watching it! On Saturday the chill out turned into an Ibiza style players’ party with live DJ’s and

It was the biggest party ever!

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All of the hard work to put such an event up and running, is done by four elements of the management team, which cover the festival field, promotion, logistics, staffing, writing the game scenarios, trade vendors and sponsors, etc. Then, ten days before the event starts, the event staff of about ten people do «all hands on deck» type of work.

As for the refs, a good tight crew of about 30 home grown NPF refs do the hard job of keeping everything running smoothly for the players involved!

The trading area is filled with Tippmann

Sports, Enola Gaye, RAP4 UK, Dye Precision, Just Paintball, NPF, Warped Sports, BZ Paintball, GI / Lips Paintball, to name just a few.

As for the hard question of what can or could be done to make more people play this sport, Kerry says: «I think that there has generally been a good upturn in business in the last couple of years (…).The Magfed scene has gone particularly crazy here in the UK and that area at the moment is bringing both old and new players into that scene. We as an industry just need to continue to show paintball

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to the masses in the right way - the great team sport that it is which has great camaraderie and friendships for life!»

Kerry unveiled a bit of what’s happening on the Paintfest 2015. There are plans

to upgrade facilities for the players and investing in ways to improve the game. «We would love to see more people from overseas teams attending too...so get those flights booked early.» •

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13SCENARIO

Big Game

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GRIP talked with Bertl from the Scenario Big Game

in Poland while we were covering their last event

that happened on the 29th , 30th and 31st of August!

Text: André Faria | Photos: Roberto Wiesner from ID-Paintball

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In the paintball world since 2001 mostly playing woodland, Bertl partnered up with Hartmut from Gotchaspielfeld to build the Scenario Event in what is called the Gotchaspielfeld North Field, in Brozek - Poland. Their work brought to life a special big game that is growing, and it’s one of the biggest scenario paintball events in Europe.

In his memories, the last SBG 12 in May had set the benchmark for a very good event, with side events, tradeshow and integrating magfed! The sky is the limit now! Also the video from SBG 5, is carved in our memories… we wonder why…

This year the players had new fields with several improvements, many side events, like magfed tournaments, night games and

the Milsig Shooting Range that offered a brand new M17 to the winner! Also an item packed tradeshow with Maskenfetischisten, Gotschaspielfeld, PBMERCH4FUN, the Outdoor Shop cottbus and Milsig Europe.

The SBG overall has conditions like any other great European event, providing their customers with accommodation, hot showers, catering, tech support and a famous Saturday night wild party with some hot action strip show. They also set up a Friday night cinema session and on the Saturday evening they presented a Scenario Big Game Video from the day, after the winning ceremony.

One more fantastic thing is that SBG is located at a secret old German explosives factory (Forst Scheuno) from WWII, and

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they offer a tour through the hundreds of bunkers with plenty of information about them, and also tank drives with an original T54 tank.

And what about the games? Besides walking around the scenario with a real T54 tank on the field, the teams have to find scenario points in different missions. They also run the VIP and Capture the Flag style games.

The 600 players were divided in two teams: Team Tactic, an organized regiment with generals and officers, and Team Guerillos United (GU), no discipline in this team, they will shoot anything that moves. The event was fully booked because the organization has set the limit of 600 players

to avoid losing quality of service.All of this is possible due to a team

of 70 people that take great pride not only on their work, but also in the close relationship with the players. Of those, 30 are referees on the field.

Besides the successful SBG event, GRIP asked how Bertl sees paintball globally,

and the answer was positive and full of great messages: «There is a great future for woodland paintball, the events are growing and the people think of it in

SBG has set the benchmark for a very good event, with side events, tradeshow and integrating magfed.

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a more positive fashion. For the future, safety should be more of a focus if we want to be accepted as a safe and positive sport. Magfed is a key feature for the future, there are no big magfed events but I’m sure that soon there will be enough magfed players for these events. I also think about a magfed league in Europe.»

What can players expect for the 2015 SBG events? Nothing less and nothing more than hard work to build a better SBG! Things like power to the camping area, a player information system for the

scenarios, a new field scenario of cars and also the quest for new partners for the trading area.

Bertl says goodbye to the GRIP readers with some final words: «The paintball

community should work together, not against each other. We are a very positive community and good events help get a better image and more people trying to play paintball!» •

SBG is located at a secret old German explosives factory from WWII.

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The first thing we notice is the black colour contrasting with the previous white version. In my opinion this colour is more adequate for the practice of our sport since the paint doesn’t stain the fabric of the sneakers and is way better for those sneaky players who want to hide a shot from the refs.

The design was also altered although it maintains the robust look. The first version seemed like a bulky running shoe, while this one is significantly slimmer and is 15% lighter.

Although the new DROM is lighter, the quality of the fabrics is better. The new design combines rubber and PU leather

on the front which double its resistance compared with the first version. At the same time the ankle support is more effective, wrapping the foot properly and making it more stable in all movements.

The tongue is longer than the first version too which makes the sneaker more comfortable. However, we have to say that it is also a negative aspect; if the DROM doesn’t fit perfectly to your foot the part just before the shoes’ tongue will make a little lump. It’s not a big issue… but we like perfection!

One of the big problems of the

After a long wait due to manufacturing delays for the new DROM we received the new version of the renowned trainers on the market. Just take a look!

Text: André Garrido

DROM1.5

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You can buy the DROM 1.5 for 99€ and it’s available from size 40 to 46.5. The price seems fair, especially with the one season guarantee where they promise to repair or give a new pair of sneakers in case something goes wrong.

We must say that the first version was very good and difficult to surpass but they did it. We believe that this mix of protection and comfort is the perfect vision for this kind of product. It’s a cool sneaker even if you just want to go out with them. •

DROM 1.0 was the heat that it made if you kept the shoes on all day. This was improved a lot in this new version with the new mesh on the sides and tongue.

The brand decided to make everything more professional, delivering the shoes with a black bag with the logo printed on one side. Another great advantage that was already available on the previous version was the three different types of spikes made for different kinds of floor.

ADVANTAGES• One season guarantee• Spikes• Design

DISADVANTAGES• Bunching up of laces

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MacDev upgrades their famous barrel kit. Is it worth the money? Take a look.Text: André Garrido

MacDev Shift² BarrelKit Black

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At the end of last season, every time we passed at DYE booth we stopped to stare at the new line of gear bags. The bags were simple and pretty, and above all they had something that yelled: «Take me with you». We wanted to test them and see what the main differences are from others bags in the market and what makes them so appealing.

One thing is certain, everyone is always expecting the most clean and professional design of our industry when it comes to DYE, and these bags are no different.

DYE sent us two different models: the Resister 1.50 S and the Explorer 1.25 T.

The differences are obvious at first sight since one is a big bag for all the regular paintballers out there and the other one is the typical «travelling cool-athlete» bag.

One thing that pops out immediately

with all the 2014 bags is the DRY system that makes all of them weather sealable, a smart decision for a sport where dirt, paint and in many countries rain is a constant factor.

Although the Resister is not the top of the line in terms of size it’s one big gear bag. And when we say that is a gear bag, it’s in fact only a gear bag. The size is an important thing here as the idea is to have the simplest bag in the market with plenty of space.

The Resister only has three huge compartments, two at the top and one giant in the middle that covers

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the whole size of the bag. The first big surprise is when you open the top «pocket», you realize that this compartment is thermal. But why would someone want to have a massive thermal pocket? For a good number of reasons: first you can keep your open paintball bags in there; second you can keep your entire gear cool; lastly this preserves all gear in a controlled atmosphere, where you can prevent the collection of moisture. The bottom «pocket» is almost the same size as the top and the giant division takes up everything seen in the pictures, without any

divisions. We understand the

concept of having a bag where you can throw all your items in it without caring but honestly

we would like to have some optional separators where you decide if you want to put them or not… but typically nobody uses them, so it’s probably the right choice!

The Explorer is a different kind of bag. We would say that is the perfect bag for those who travel during weekends for the tournaments. This bag gives you the best of both worlds: all your gear with your clothes. They are split by netting,

ADVANTAGES• Accuracy• Rubberized grip• Inserts

DISADVANTAGES• Lack of colour choice

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which allows the user to access both compartments from different ends.

It’s interesting to see how this work on such a «small» bag. The size is two times a normal backpack and it’s sad that DYE didn’t think about this and include two hidden straps to make this bag a big backpack. When you open the bag you realize that it has a lot of space in both divisions.

At the top of the bag there’s a small pocket ideal for the keys to your gun, your id-cards, wallet, phone and music player. Not just one but all of them!

Both bags have a telescopic handle to carry them with ease. On the same topic of comfort, all the handles have memory foam. Another extra cool detail is that both of them have is an ID card holder for your identification on the back of the bags.

One thing that some players won’t like is the kind of wheels that were used. Although DYE says they’re all

terrain wheels, we would have preferred to see a more rugged type instead of slick ones.

Overall we loved the bags. They are very simple and without unnecessary extras that will just make everything bigger and confusing. The design is perfect with slick lines and looks very professional. In both bags there is lot of space for all the gear and clothes in, especially with the Explorer.

There are few models than can compete with these bags in terms of image, space and especially the longevity that they offer.•

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RM-1 is a simple gun for the rental market. It does what it’s supposed to do well, and has this great little touch of innovation. Are you curious?Text: André Garrido

RM-1 stands for Rental Marker and it’s obvious that this type of marker doesn’t need the coolest look or the high-end specs that all the pro-players are used to.

The rental stamp usually means that all the parts are durable with super easy maintenance and above all that doesn’t give any trouble to the players and owners. Although we can’t speak about the duration of the marker since we couldn’t use it for a long time we could notice that after intense testing everything was perfect. The maintenance is quite simple and there is really nothing that we could point out that wasn’t working.

The gun works with the same system as a Spyder – Blowback – which is a system

known for its reliability and durability.One great thing about the RM-1 is its

compatibility between Spyder and its own parts, which is great if you think of all the products and spare parts already available in the market. And these parts are cheap above all!

Tests with the marker straight out of the box were quite strange, giving inconstant results but we noticed that after some days of use and with a lot of paint shots the gun got better and became very consistent even at the chrony. Usually rental markets aren’t famous for their accuracy but the RM-1 impressed us. After getting used to it, we could really hit our targets quite easily.

There aren’t many downsides to this

RM-1

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marker. It isn’t really pretty, okay. But it’s not supposed to be. It’s very conventional with its straight lines… but who cares? This was made for a birthday party or for that guy that is starting off with his first shots.

The only thing we could point as a real downside is the weight that you can feel after some hours of playing with it.

All of you already know that we become crazy when we see any little invention in our sport. And these guys made us happy once more! They were smart and created such a simple way to keep the barrel sock literally in your hand without losing it. It’s so easy that we ask: «How the hell

has no one done this before?». When you take the barrel sock off from your barrel the shape and size of it is identical to the front grip of the gun and you can insert it there. This way you can get a rubber grip and you will not lose

the barrel sock.Although the brand tags this for Rental

we believe that the RM-1 is probably the best choice for first timers in our sport. Until this moment there wasn’t a great quality product for beginners especially for such a fair price and quality balance.

We are sure that if this gun was made on one of the huge brands of our market its success is granted.•

ADVANTAGES• Easy maintenance• Cheap spare parts• High levels of accuracy for a rental marker • Innovative barrel sock system

DISADVANTAGES• Weight

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THANKS

Blue Falcon SquadronDomingos Leitão

João RamosRicardo Catarino

Thank you all!

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1Bottle liner made of high quality stainless steel. Super safe!

223 cm length at 1,1 liter filling volume.

3Super steady and shock- resistant shell.

Fuel supra lite

Super light, Super Safe!

650GramliGht

Now available atwww.maxs-sport.com

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