Altekz Earns Senior Team Promotion At Astralis

The Danish organization promote the young talent following their Paris Major qualification failure

Astralis have promoted Alexander “Altekz” Givskov to the senior squad. The decision comes less than a week after the Danish side’s disappointing Paris Major European RMR campaign, which saw them failing to secure a spot in BLAST’s showpiece event of this summer. They took to Twitter to make the announcement.

Team update:
As a result of @Altekzzz's consistent, high performance on the talent line-up throughout 2023 and even before, the coaches have decided to include him in the main roster for the coming weeks.

As Altekz will be working with the main team, Astralis Talent will be… pic.twitter.com/P4Cwrr90YE

— Astralis Counter-Strike (@AstralisCS) April 17, 2023

What Is Astralis’ Squad Plan For The Future?

Astralis, however, did not elaborate on their future roster plans. The only thing they have said so far is that Altkz will join the senior team as a stand-in. It is uncertain whether this will be a temporary or long-term move, with the announcement stating that Altekz will be included in the main roster “for the next few weeks.”

While Altekz plays with the main roster, Andreas “kiR” Kirstein, who was recently benched by MASONIC, will step in as his substitute in the Astralis junior team.

After an 18-month stint on Ninjas in Pyjamas, Nicolai “device” Reedtz returned to the Danish squad late last year, with the addition of Christian “Buzz” Andersen following shortly after.

The year began well for the team, overcoming setbacks against Heroic and Vitality to progress to the BLAST Spring Groups, and subsequently claiming the CCT North Europe Series 3 title with triumphs against teams such as 9INE and Aurora.

The team's fortunes have dwindled since then, with lackluster showings that include their failure to advance past the group stage at ESL Pro League and their elimination from the BLAST Paris Major Europe RMR.

Altekz vs. top 50 teams on HLTV

Surely Astralis are considering giving Altekz a shot: pic.twitter.com/acyfyKNPr9

— Emil Funke (@mad0cs) April 16, 2023

Astralis have called on Altekz, a 19-year-old rifler from their academy roster, in an attempt to address their struggles. In stark contrast to their senior side, Astralis Talent have been in exceptional form lately, and Altekz played a vital role in their success. They have won regional tournaments like SDTV Invitational and POWER Ligaen this year, as well as the highly esteemed CCT North Europe Series 4, where they emerged victorious against teams such as GamerLegion and Copenhagen Flames. As a result, they have moved up in the rankings and currently occupy the 35th spot.

Altekz boasts the highest average rating for Astralis Talent in 2023, which prompted the hierarchy to welcome him to the senior side. He also clocked the highest K/D. With an impressive rating of 1.24 over 16 maps in CCT North Europe Series 4, he caught the attention of many. His remarkable 1.33 series rating against GamerLegion showed that he has what it takes to compete at a higher level.