Chopper retires after decade-long Counter-Strike career

Leonid “chopper” Vishnyakov has retired from Counter-Strike after more than 10 years in the game. The 29-year-old competed at 40 notable LAN tournaments, including 11 Majors, and won nine trophies with Team Spirit.

Vishnyakov spent most of his career with Vega Squadron and Team Spirit, representing the two organizations for a combined 10 years. He joined Team Spirit in 2019 and later became its in-game leader.

He first gained attention with Vega Squadron at the ELEAGUE Major 2017 Main Qualifier. The team defeated Ninjas in Pyjamas 16-2 on Cache, eliminating the Swedish organization and ending its run of appearances at every previous Major.

With Team Spirit, Vishnyakov won the Perfect World Shanghai Major, IEM Katowice 2024, IEM Cologne 2025, several BLAST events and a PGL tournament.

In a statement, Vishnyakov described Vega Squadron and Team Spirit as more than teams because he spent 10 years with them. He credited Vega Squadron with helping him begin his esports career and Team Spirit with helping him develop as a player and professional.

He also thanked Nikolay “Certus,” who gave him the in-game leader role, and Sergey “hally,” with whom he learned to win at Team Spirit. Vishnyakov added that his work with the organization gave him experience in media and an understanding of its operations.

Team Spirit benched Vishnyakov at the end of 2025. Since then, he has worked on streaming and community broadcasting projects. He was a finalist for IGL of the Year in 2024 and missed the award in 2025 by one point.

Team Spirit released a tribute video for Vishnyakov on Friday. He thanked the organization’s supporters for following the team through its wins and losses, adding: “Thank you for being there for us, and see you on the streams!”

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Reviewed and fact-checked by Alex Panasenko on November 7.