A landmark victory for
Vitality. This week, the
claimed the first title in the division's history by winning the
League of Legends Game Changers: Rising 2026 Stage 2. In doing so, they swept last year's champions Eterna 3-0, positioning themselves as one of Europe's strongest contenders this season. Nonetheless, the team now turns towards the soon-to-begin Equal Esports Cup, as well as the next three steps of the LGC.
In an exclusive interview with
Sheep Esports, the team's support,
, discussed her entry into the competitive scene and her development over the past six months. The rookie also shared insights into her journey, the challenges she overcame on her path to professional play, and the story behind her now-iconic player name.
Though some games were close, you’ve won the LGC Stage 2 with a 3-0 sweep. How are you feeling now that you've had time to debrief with the team and let the adrenaline settle?
Natascha "Honda CBR 500 R" Emorfili Latzel: “I am super happy. I felt like we should have won Stage 1 as well, but we choked. I agree that the games were not really clean—there were really many mistakes from our side. I feel like the biggest problem there is for us right now is a lack of decisiveness. That's what we're working on right now.
All in all, it wasn’t as clean as I’d have wanted our games to be, I feel like I could have played better. Still, I’m glad that everyone is stepping up, you know? Right now, I feel like pretty much everyone is able to carry.
This is one of your first experiences in a truly professional and structured environment. What has it been like to compete in tournaments such as Game Changers with a team that has dedicated coaches, support staff, and a strong infrastructure behind it?
Honda: I’m really, really… really grateful that I got this opportunity!
You know, I’m just so happy because, as you said, everything is super professional. We get so much support, not only from our coaches, but from Vitality as an organization as well. We can talk with players from our sister teams, and even take questions up to our LEC staff as well.
It's just so nice because we all have the same mindset:
“We want to be the best and to succeed. There isn’t a player here that thinks differently, and therefore, we all put our 100% into the game.”
Obviously, we’ll have some off days, but we support each other a lot—we can talk openly about issues and things to improve. No one will take feedback badly, and we’re all welcoming of criticism. We are really lucky to have this roster.
I also have my own goals: I want to become the best, and improve a lot. Vitality provides me with everything I need to meet these goals. I’m fulfilling my dream, and it feels great.
Were you surprised when Team Vitality reached out to sign you, especially given your previous lack of prior exposure to this level of play?
Honda: For sure. To be honest, I was fangirling so much—I still am [laughs]. It was actually so funny because, when they reached out I was like: “No fucking way! Vitality messaged me!” In my head, I was just a complete random.
I’m so grateful I was given this opportunity. It’s also thanks to me deciding to push towards reaching Grand Master last year. I would probably not have gotten this spot without it.
Did you ever feel nervous or intimidated playing alongside such experienced and accomplished teammates, and how did you deal with that?
Honda: At the start for sure. I felt super intimidated to be around them. Obviously, I was the rookie of the team, so I had to learn the most out of anyone. I made mistakes, and had to work on myself a lot. I don’t have a problem with that.
But yeah, sometimes I did have some doubts, even if it was all in my head. Back then, I was telling myself like, “what am I doing here with all these great players,” you know? Even if it didn’t always feel like it, we are and were all equal. My team has treated me really well since I joined.
You’ve been with Vitality since the end of 2025. Despite having played few official matches, do you already feel like you’ve changed compared to when you first joined?
Honda: I’m a completely different person now actually. It’s so crazy to me how much I’ve learned in like only six months, even if we didn’t play many officials—like two LFL games and then the Spring Dawn Tournament.
When I first got in, I had no idea what to expect of this team. We were all joking around and going like “maybe we’ll win some games in the LFL,” but I still couldn’t really picture how things would evolve.
“I was really stunned by how fast games can be decided in higher levels of play.”
Games could come down to some tiny mistakes in lane, and I would realize that what I thought I knew about some matchups were wrong. That would snowball into us being unable to contest objectives, and that’d mess up entire games.
It took my time to notice these kinds of things, but I’ve learned from them. Now I know how much micro elements can have an impact on games. Good teams will abuse every mistake you make. I’m working actively with many coaches, and I take a ton of notes as well.
I’m really happy with how far I’ve come. I do think we are the best team in the LGC, but we shouldn’t relax because of that. We can still learn a lot and grow as a team. We need to be more decisive, and just better.
Would you describe yourself as more introverted or extroverted, and how does that affect your role within the team?
Honda: I’m actually really extroverted—the most out of the team, I would say. At the start, it’s just that I was so awestruck by everything that was happening. I was super shy, and I didn’t want my teammates to think I was stupid or something [laughs].
Having this personality can go both ways: if I’m feeling bad, people will notice and the vibes may not be as great. But if I’m in a good mood, I can bring so much energy to the entire team.
I’m working on mitigating the bad parts, but I would definitely say that I have a huge impact on the liveliness of the team. That’s just the way I am, I like bringing good vibes, cracking jokes, and helping out if I feel like the vibes are down.
How would you describe each person’s role in the team, including your own?
Honda: It’s a hard question actually.
In my opinion, Cosmïc (Charlotte Tranquillin) is like the mom of the group. She’s really confident and she stands her ground a lot.
To be honest, rym (Rym Salloum) is a little bit of a clown. I’d even say she’s a really good clown.
What is Delicate (Chara Giannopoulou)… I’d say the boss lady [laughs]. Actually Coco (Cosmic) is a boss lady as well, but I guess Deli maybe a bit more.
I feel like Owpi (Mimi Effraimidi) is the one that grounds us, both in and out of game. She’s the one that will tell us to focus up and not get too excited.
And… What am I? It’s hard to say. I’d say I can be somewhat of a clown as well. I work well with reading emotions, bringing the vibes up, you know? In some way, perhaps I’m the glue of the team. I’m not sure if it’s the right way to call it though. Maybe the heart of the party.
Your in-game name is “Honda CBR 500 R.” Why did you choose that name? Is it because you actually have that model yourself? Are you a biker?
Honda: Yeah. Bikes are just really really cool. The first touch I had with motorcycles and women was Megan Fox in Transformers [laughs]. I thought it was so hot, it was so cool.
And then my dad, he’s a biker himself and he always took me with him when I didn’t have a license yet. And then I decided to pass my license and I drove with him together when we were living in the same city.
Now, I have my own motorcycle, and I just really love it.
“In a way, it feels like I am keeping a little bit of a connection with my dad. That’s why I chose this nickname.”
So I guess biking is kind of a second passion for you then, right? When you’re not scrimming, you go out when the weather is good?
Honda: If I have the time, yes. Right now I don’t really have it. We have our officials, scrims, and I work part-time on the side as well. So it’s kind of hard. But yeah, when I have the time, I do.
How do you manage your schedule with a part-time job alongside scrims, coaching, and everything else? Is that something other players in the team also deal with?
Honda: Yeah, Deli is working full-time, for example. I don’t know how she can handle everything. I could never imagine myself handling a full-time job and doing this on the side.
But for me, I have to admit it’s kind of hard. I have my job, then I have officials, then I have many coaching sessions, and then I also want to play solo queue and grind a bit. I also need time for my own life and hobbies—going to the gym and other things… It’s hard to juggle everything.
But esports is my number one priority besides my job, so I’m doing everything I can. I’m still a little bit mad that I’m not like at 1k LP because I don’t have the time to really grind, but I will get there eventually.
What would you say is your end goal in League of Legends? Are you aiming for ERLs, LEC, or is it more about continuing in the Game Changers scene?
Honda: My primary goal is to live out my full potential. I don’t really care what that will translate into—whether it’s LEC, ERL1, or whatever.
Still, I think it will be further than playing in the women’s scene, for sure. I can see myself playing in ERL Division 1. But I think LEC is a little bit… I don’t think it’s realistic because I’m also too old already in my opinion. Maybe one day I’ll get an opportunity out of nowhere, if I’m good enough, but it’s not what I’m aiming for.
“I just want to improve as much as I can, be the best version of myself, and then see where it takes me.”
You mentioned your age earlier. You’re 24 now and turning 25 soon—how do you view age in link with your career? Have you personally felt any decline in your level over time?
Honda: I’ve been playing League for like 10 years now. Still, there’s a difference between playing it casually, and really playing it. You can just mindlessly queue games, but I don’t think that qualifies as “playing”.
The most progress I’ve made throughout my time playing the game has been with Vitality in the last six months. So I don’t feel like there is any difference in my mechanics compared to when I began playing—it’s not a problem right now.
Maybe it’s all in my head, you know? There’s stigma, but Faker (Lee Sang-hyeok) is still performing so well, even if he’s over 30. I’d be curious to read research on if there are differences in the impact of age depending on gender.
“Regardless, I will continue playing until I can’t anymore.”
You know, when I was 17, I was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis as well. I’ve beat this illness now, but it could come back some day—I’m not sure. When you have this illness, it leads to your nerves being exposed and inflamed, which can bring many different symptoms from eyesight, to how you move your hands, and more.
I don’t know what the future holds; we’ll see.
Do you actively think about your health a lot? You mentioned going to the gym—does your past make you more conscious about making sure you stay in good shape?
Honda: I think I beat this illness because I did a lot of psychotherapy and I changed my lifestyle, basically—my nutrition, how I move and do sports, and just working a lot on myself, fixing how I live my life, basically. And I still do this. I go to psychotherapy on a regular basis and take care of my health in various ways.
I also stopped vaping at the start of the Vitality journey. It was kind of hard, but now I don’t have this need anymore, so it’s great [laughs].
But yeah, I still work on it, and sometimes, you know, I don’t do 100%. Sometimes I eat some fast food or whatever, but that’s not really the point of having a healthy and balanced lifestyle anyways.
We’ve only seen you play two stages so far, and EEC is starting in two weeks. How are you envisioning the coming weeks and months for the team—what will the next steps be?
Honda: Individually, I have a few things I want to work on. Notably, I want to improve my champion pool and get more picks in. That’ll be my main focus, for sure.
Regarding scrims and our team, we have a few topics we’re focusing on. Mostly, we have to find ways to close out games better and be more decisive. Every Stage we play in, we are able to take home some much more honest data about our progress under pressure. It’s so much better than scrims.
It will help a lot. In Stage 1, we had that loss against Mental Rush, and it helped us a lot as well. The games against G2, which weren’t so good, and the loss against Eterna, were the same. We managed to beat them back 3-0 in the end, but it wasn’t clean. There’s always stuff to learn from in those games.
How would you currently rank the teams in the scene, and do you treat any of them as bigger opponents than others?
Honda: I think MRS is the best team, after us of course. Then there is G2, Eterna, SK, Blue Otter, Barcząca Babylon, and finally Eclipse. That’s how I’d rank them.
You know, I feel like the greater the opponent, the better we play ourselves. I’m really thankful we can finally play against these teams because, for the last five months we were basically doing nothing. We are so locked in.
Do you feel Vitality is in a good position to maintain the level you showed in Stage 2? On paper, do you consider yourselves the best team right now?
Honda: Yes, for sure. On paper, 100%. I think our drafting is the best out of the scene, which helps a lot.
When it comes to winning or losing, we are our own biggest enemies. Sometimes maybe we troll a little bit too much or have a little bit too much fun and don’t take the game serious enough, or even disrespect enemies, you know? And then something like in the MRS games happens.
And of course we don’t want to repeat the same mistake again. So we talked about it thoroughly, and it will not happen again. As long as everyone is putting in the same effort that they did before, I don’t see any reason why we should lose.
If you could leave a “time capsule” message to yourself one year from now, what would you want to say about your goals and what you hope to achieve?
Honda: I would say I should keep grinding, working hard, and… don’t let my ego ruin my performance and blind me, you know? If I manage this…
“… I will just become the best support in the scene and no one will reach me. This is my honest opinion.”
