donk (gamer)

Donk
donk in the BetBoom Dacha 2023 event
Current team
TeamTeam Spirit
RoleRifler
GamesCounter-Strike 2
Personal information
NameДанил Крышковец
(Danil Kryshkovets)
Born (2007-01-25) January 25, 2007
Tomsk, Russia
NationalityRussian
Career information
Playing career2021–present
Team history
2021–2023Spirit Academy[a]
2023–presentTeam Spirit
Career highlights and awards

Danil Kryshkovets,[b] better known by his nickname donk, is a Russian professional Counter-Strike 2 player for Team Spirit who is widely recognized for his aggressive playstyle.[1] He was named the HLTV player of the year in 2024.[2]

Early life

Born on January 25, 2007, in Tomsk, Danil started playing Counter-Strike at the age of four when his brother introduced him to the game. Two years later, they switched to a new version, Counter-Strike: Global Offensive. He devoted a lot of time to developing his skills, and at the age of 14 he was able to get into the European FPL-C.[3]

Career

In 2021, when he was 14, he was noticed by OverDrive, who recommended him to the Team Spirit academy. He played for Team Spirit's youth roster for two years.[3]

In 2023, Danil moved to the main Team Spirit roster.[4] In the first tournament he played for them, CCT North Europe Series #6, they took first place.[5] At their first LAN tournament, Dunav Party 2023, Spirit also took first place.[6]

He received his first MVP title from HLTV for winning the BetBoom Dacha tournament, finishing it with a rating of 1.31, making him the second youngest player in history to receive an HLTV MVP award.[7] After Spirit won the IEM Katowice 2024 tournament, Danil was named the MVP and became the youngest player to be named an HLTV MVP at a "Big Event".[8][9]

At his first Major, PGL Copenhagen 2024, Team Spirit advanced to the playoffs. In the first match of the playoffs, they lost the game to FaZe Clan.[10] Despite this, Danil finished the tournament with a rating of 1.35.

After the Major, at BetBoom Dacha Belgrade 2024, donk was awarded the MVP despite his team only taking second place.[11] Spirit took first place in the final tournament of the season, the BLAST Premier Spring Final 2024, with Danil being the MVP of the championship.[12] This tournament gave Spirit the first place in both Valve and HLTV team ratings.[13]

Team Spirit won the Perfect World Shanghai Major, with Danil being awarded the MVP, making him the youngest HLTV MVP at a Major.[14][15][16]

Awards and accolades

Rankings

MVP

Awards

  • HLTV Opener of the Year 2024[26]
  • HLTV Highlight of the Year 2024[26]
  • HLTV Player of the Year 2024[27]

Tournament achievements

Placement Tournament Location Date
With Team Spirit
2nd place, silver medalist(s) CCT Online Finals #2 Online August 2 – 10, 2023
1st place, gold medalist(s) BetBoom Dacha 2023 Dubai, UAE December 5 – 10, 2023
1st place, gold medalist(s) IEM Katowice 2024 Katowice, Poland February 3 – 11, 2024
5—8 PGL CS2 Major Copenhagen 2024 Copenhagen, Denmark March 17 – 31, 2024
2nd place, silver medalist(s) BetBoom Dacha Belgrade 2024 Belgrade, Serbia May 14 – 19, 2024
3rd place, bronze medalist(s) IEM Dallas 2024 Dallas, TX, US May 27 – June 2, 2024
1st place, gold medalist(s) BLAST Premier Spring Final 2024 London, United Kingdom June 12 – 16, 2024
5—8 2024 Esports World Cup Riyadh, Saudi Arabia July 3 – August 25, 2024
1st place, gold medalist(s) BetBoom Dacha Belgrade Season 2 Belgrade, Serbia August 28 – September 1, 2024
2nd place, silver medalist(s) BLAST Premier World Final 2024 Sentosa, Singapore October 30 – November 3, 2024
1st place, gold medalist(s) Perfect World Shanghai Major 2024 Shanghai, China December 5 – 15, 2024
1st place, gold medalist(s) BLAST Bounty 2025 Season 1 Finals Copenhagen, Denmark January 23 – 26, 2025
2nd place, silver medalist(s) IEM Katowice 2025 Katowice, Poland February 1 – 9, 2025
3rd place, bronze medalist(s) ESL Pro League Season 21 Stockholm, Sweden March 1 – 16, 2025
3rd place, bronze medalist(s) BLAST Open Spring 2025 Lisbon, Portugal March 19 – 30, 2025
7—8 ESL Grand Slam Season 5 Online April 17 – 27, 2025
3rd place, bronze medalist(s) BLAST Rivals Spring 2025 Copenhagen, Denmark April 30 – May 4, 2025
1st place, gold medalist(s) PGL Astana 2025 Astana, Kazakhstan May 10 – 18, 2025
5—8 BLAST Austin Major 2025 Austin, Texas June 12 – 22, 2025
1st place, gold medalist(s) IEM Cologne 2025 Cologne, Germany July 26 – August 3, 2025
1st place, gold medalist(s) BLAST Bounty 2025 Season 2 Finals BLAST Studio, Malta Aug 14th - Aug 17th 2025

Notes

  1. ^ Donk was inactive between January 2022 and May 2022.
  2. ^ Russian: Данил Крышковец

References

  1. ^ "Danil 'donk' Kryshkovets". HLTV.org. Retrieved February 1, 2025.
  2. ^ a b "Top 20 players of 2024: donk (1)". HLTV.org. Retrieved January 24, 2025.
  3. ^ a b "One for the future: donk". HLTV.org. Retrieved February 2, 2025.
  4. ^ "Spirit announce new roster with academy trio including donk". HLTV.org. Retrieved February 2, 2025.
  5. ^ "Team Spirit secure CCT North Europe Series 6 title". csgo.com. Retrieved February 2, 2025.
  6. ^ "PARI Dunav Party 2023". HLTV.org. Retrieved February 2, 2025.
  7. ^ a b "donk named BetBoom Dacha MVP". HLTV.org. Retrieved January 24, 2025.
  8. ^ a b "donk equals Big Event record rating to earn IEM Katowice MVP". HLTV.org. Retrieved January 24, 2025.
  9. ^ Ali Jones (February 13, 2024). "17-year-old Counter-Strike prodigy carries his team to tournament victory in a performance dubbed one of the greatest in the history of the game". gamesradar. Retrieved February 2, 2025.
  10. ^ "FaZe knocks out Spirit from PGL Copenhagen Major 2024 — Escorenews". escorenews.com. Retrieved February 2, 2025.
  11. ^ "donk named BetBoom Dacha Belgrade 2024 MVP". csgo.com. Retrieved February 2, 2025.
  12. ^ "BLAST Premier Spring Final 2024". HLTV.org. Retrieved February 2, 2025.
  13. ^ "Spirit rise to No. 1 for first time in history". HLTV.org. Retrieved February 2, 2025.
  14. ^ a b "donk becomes youngest and highest-rated Major MVP in Shanghai". HLTV.org. Retrieved January 24, 2025.
  15. ^ "Donk completes perfect rookie year as Spirit crowned CS2 champions in Shanghai". esports.gg. January 12, 2025. Retrieved February 1, 2025.
  16. ^ 杨怡. "Donk steals the show at CS Major in Shanghai". www.chinadaily.com.cn. Retrieved January 25, 2025.
  17. ^ "donk named MVP of BetBoom Dacha Belgrade". HLTV.org. Retrieved January 24, 2025.
  18. ^ "donk awarded BLAST Premier Spring Final MVP". HLTV.org. Retrieved January 24, 2025.
  19. ^ "donk wins his fourth MVP of 2024 at BB Dacha Belgrade S2". HLTV.org. Retrieved January 24, 2025.
  20. ^ "donk named BLAST Bounty S1 Finals MVP". HLTV.org. Retrieved January 26, 2025.
  21. ^ "donk clinches second MVP of 2025 in Astana". HLTV.org. Retrieved May 19, 2025.
  22. ^ "IEM Cologne 2025 Overview". Retrieved August 8, 2025.
  23. ^ "BLAST Bounty 2025 Season 2 Finals". HLTV.org. Retrieved August 17, 2025.
  24. ^ "donk wins Rookie of the Year award". HLTV.org. Retrieved January 24, 2025.
  25. ^ "NAVI named HLTV's best team of 2024; donk – Rookie of the Year". csgo.com. Retrieved February 2, 2025.
  26. ^ a b "HLTV reveals All-star Team of the Year". HLTV.org. Retrieved February 2, 2025.
  27. ^ Tolan, Peter (January 13, 2025). "DANIL "DONK" KRYSHKOVETS CROWNED PLAYER OF THE YEAR, TAKING HOME FOUR TROPHIES AT HLTV AWARDS PRESENTED BY 1XBET". European Gaming Industry News. Retrieved February 1, 2025.