One Pokémon TCG competitor claims they were harassed and verbally abused by a top player at the North America International Championships (NAIC) this weekend. Now, the community is calling for a serious penalty against the alleged harasser, while others suggest it could’ve been a case of miscommunication.
On June 8, day two of NAIC, a female Pokémon TCG player claimed she was verbally abused by another player, Andrea Zorat, after their match ended in a tie. According to the post, Zorat went off on the player in front of a judge and crowd and accused her of doing “everything possible to force a tie” and “slow playing.” She stated she was never trying to force a tie and that the judge “saw no issue with [her] pace of play.” Zorat also allegedly made an offensive comment: “You get what you deserve, loser.”
While the female player in question praised one judge for handling the situation well and comforting her, Zorat’s behavior was ultimately excused as “him being Italian” with an “aggressive accent,” therefore receiving no penalty outside of being watched by security for the remainder of the tournament. The victim believes Zorat should’ve received more punishment. “Getting off free after that disgraceful meltdown is insane.”
Fellow Girl Power teammate Natalie, who originally posted about the situation, hopes for an immediate ban against Zorat, calling the whole incident “disgusting.” Similarly, other members of the TCG community believe he should’ve been disqualified for that outburst.
“The worst part is, that this is the currently 17th highest ranked European player, the 3rd highest ranked Italian player, and soon to be moving up due to his performance today,” the affected player stated. “This lack of any sort of punishment is completely unacceptable as someone who is seen as the face of European and Italian [Pokémon] play, and I voiced my unhappiness at the resolution of the situation, to no success.”
In response to the accusations, Zorat apologized and shared his side of the story, stating it wasn’t his intention to hurt her. “I never said she [was] a loser,” he commented. “[I] just said [she] deserved to lose that game.” He also claimed he asked the judges if he could apologize to her, but she refused.
Fellow TCG player Rowan Stavenow commented on the situation, recalling positive experiences when playing against Zorat and suggesting possible miscommunication here.
NAIC is coming to a close today, with new champions being crowned across TCG, VGC, Go, and UNITE. Dot Esports is there to cover the action with travel provided by The Pokémon Company.
