A hand gesture by one of the finalists at the Pokémon World Championships completely changed the outcome of the tournament, as fans argue if disqualification was too harsh.
For Pokémon Trading Card Game fans, nothing is bigger than the World Championship, which take months to prepare for and this year are being held in Hawaii.
Fans gain entry to the World Championship by earning points throughout the season, from events like the European International Championships, which also has thousands of pounds in prize money.
Despite all the effort involved though one of the favourites to win saw their dreams shattered this week, and all because of a hand gesture.
American Ian Robb had reached the quarter-finals when he faced off against Fernando Cifuentes from Chile, a game that he eventually won to see him through to the next stage.
At least that’s what everyone thought, but soon after his win Robb was disqualified, while Cifuentes progressed to the semi-finals instead.
Fans on social media later found a clip of Robb doing what looks like a rude gesture, while looking at someone off screen, during his match against Cifuentes.
@Ian__Robb really just jagged on his opponent at #PokemonWorlds2024 ð¤£ð pic.twitter.com/Lf1YAZDbme
— Java (@JavaPROx) August 18, 2024
According to Comicbook.com, Robb was booted out of the competition for ‘unsportsmanlike conduct’.
Robb’s disqualification has sparked discussion on social media about whether he meant it as something rude or if it was to symbolise a dice roll – which is used in Pokémon TCG games to add an element of chance, and which Robb had been talking about a lot before the match.
‘Imagine doing an obscene hand gesture in a championship of one of the most known game franchises in modern history, that’s rate E for everyone by proxy, and believing you would not face consequences for being a dum****,’ said Alison Aracena on Twitter.
‘He was clearly mimicking rolling dice if you actually watched the match. So crazy to me,’ C. Cole says.
Robb himself hasn’t discussed the hand gesture, but did say he was cheering for Cifuentes to win the Masters World Championships, replying to a fan who blames The Pokémon Company International for the controversy.
Iâm cheering for him today. After meeting him and his dad I could tell how much making cut at worlds meant. Heâs a deserving champion.
— TSS Ian Robb (@Ian__Robb) August 18, 2024
Cifuentes did win the tournament in the end, beating Seinosuke Shiokawa from Japan in the final, and taking the top prize of $50,000 (£38,000).
That means that Robb’s hand gesture, whatever the meaning was, ended up changing the outcome of the Pokémon Masters World Championship completely.
It’s unclear if Robb feels unfairly done by or embarrassed – or both – but his seventh place did at least earn him $15,000 (£11,500).
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