Las Vegas Sun

March 28, 2024

Henderson man is Yu-Gi-Oh! champion

Has chance to compete for trip to Tokyo for world championship

Top dualer Michael Balan

Courtesy Photo

Henderson resident Michael Balan, 26, wins the 100th Yu-Gi-Oh! Championship Series held in March in Long Beach Calif., April 10, 2012.

Adrenaline rushed through a speechless Michael Balan, who scanned a crowd of thousands searching for his baby girl and her mother after he won an international card game tournament.

The Henderson resident had just beaten more than 4,300 players in the Yu-Gi-Oh! Championship Series — a March tournament he had sworn was his last.

“They’re my cheerleaders, my good luck charms,” the 26-year-old Balan said of his 9-month-old Emma and her mother, Irma Lozano, who were by his side the night he won the historic match.

Luck was just one element Balan took to Long Beach, Calif., for the 100th tournament of the Yu-Gi-Oh! Championship Series — which broke a world record for largest tournament.

“We were anticipating a maximum of 3,000,” said Yumi Hoashi, vice president for the card division of Konami.

“We’re also in the book of world records for being the best-selling trading card game of all time,” said Hoashi, adding that the card game manufacturer has sold more than 25 billion cards worldwide.

The card game originated in Japan and reached North America in the late 1990s.

Balan was about 17 years old when he started playing the game with his brother Marc, who is four years younger.

“There’s a big following here in Las Vegas,” said Balan, a nurse at Desert Springs Hospital.

The two-player card game gives players 8,000 life points and, using a deck of 40 monster, spells and trap cards, the two players battle to vanquish their opponent’s life points.

“Just like in poker, you need to bluff and outsmart your opponent,” said Balan, adding that he’s played poker since he was in college.

The two card games have similarities, Balan said. Both games use strategy and luck of the draw.

“My deck gave them the element of surprise,” said Balan, referring to the 40 cards he’s selected from the thousands of available cards released over the years.

Balan knew one person would walk away from the Long Beach tournament a winner, but he had no idea he’d be the one holding a trophy at the end of the two-day event.

“I’ve always done very well,” said Balan, who was a finalist in a 2010 tournament in New Jersey.

The 26-year-old isn’t embarrassed that he plays a card game where some of his opponents are teenagers dressed in costumes fit for a night of trick-or-treating.

“They’re younger,” he said. “They just want to have fun. I don’t judge them.”

During tournaments, players advance in a bracket system until the final rounds, where one loss could mean elimination.

Halfway through the match, the brothers were randomly selected to dual one another.

“Oh, we drove a couple hundred miles just to play each other,” said Marc, remembering the irony of the situation.

Balan beat his brother that round, but the two continued to advance until the final rounds with 64 players remaining.

That night Balan met his final opponent — Simon He from Manchester, England.

At the end of the match, “the U.K. player looked at his hand and knew there was no way he could win,” Hoashi said.

The two shook hands, Hoashi said. “The sportsmanship is really nice to see.”

Balan was ecstatic.

“I had kids, even older kids asking for my signature,” Balan said. “A lot of websites online crashed. That’s what I heard.”

“He was all over YouTube,” Marc said.

In winning the 100th tournament, Balan received an iPad and an invitation to the world championship qualifier. If he wins there, he’ll be invited to the world championship held Aug. 11-12 in Tokyo.

“I want to go to Japan,” said Balan, not sure when exactly he’ll give up dueling.

“I’m a family man. Life happens,” said Balan, holding his smiling daughter.

For more information on the tournament visit www.yugioh.com.

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