Image credit: RekklesLoL (X/Twitter)
In an almost two-hour long stream, Rekkles spoke candidly with Caedral about his recent high-functioning autism diagnosis and how he has adjusted to it as well as having some few-found perspective on his career so far.
Martin “Rekkles” Larsson is seen as one of the best players in the history of League of Legends that saw him win multiple titles and accolades over the course of his 12-year career. His journey had also seen him swap regions as well as roles, having recently made the move to South Korea earlier this year to join T1 to be the support player for its Esports Academy squad.
And over the weekend, Rekkles sat down with former pro player-turned-caster Marc Robert "Caedrel" Lamont to talk about his time with T1 so far and what the future looks like. However, the almost two-hour long livestream hosted by Caedral saw Rekkles speak candidly about his experiences as well as his recent diagnosis with high-functioning autism and being on the spectrum.
How Rekkles dealt with the diagnosis
According to WebMD, high-functioning autism is an informal diagnosis that is used to describe people who are on the autism spectrum disorder but are still able to read, write, and speak as well as handle basic life skills. It's also mentioned that like all people on the autism spectrum, those who are high-functioning “have a hard time with social interaction and communication.”
They don’t naturally read social cues and might find it difficult to make friends. They can get so stressed by a social situation that they shut down. They don’t make much eye contact or small talk. People on the spectrum who are high-functioning can also be very devoted to routine and order. They might have repetitive and restrictive habits that seem odd to others.
Rekkles broached the subject by talking about when he was first diagnosed back in September 2023 during his second stint with Fnatic. This came about after he was benched from the team due to poor performances and it was at the recommendation of his therapist that he see a specialist during that period. And while at first he did seem shocked and taken aback by this, Rekkles has not let the diagnosis affect him and instead said that his life has been better since then.
After getting diagnosed, it gave Rekkles greater insight and perspective on his professional career and why his first stint with Fnatic was so successful while others didn't exactly work out. He touched on having a stable practice environment surrounded by familiar faces that allowed him to perform at his peak so consistently. Given that T1 is now his fourth team in four years, he now understands where it had gone wrong.
While it isn't common knowledge, many on the autism spectrum have found it hard to adjusting and adapting to change. According to Integrity Inc., “the dislike of change is a hallmark of high-functioning autism.” This will now explain Rekkles' dip in performances over the years as he has had to change teams multiple times over a span of a few years. “When I started changing teams and meeting new people every year and new situations to be in, this is not good for someone like me.”
T1 doing its part
Aside from the new-found knowledge and understanding that he now has about himself, Rekkles also mentioned how well T1 have treated and taken care of him since his move to South Korea. Mental health issues are still seen as a social stigma in the region with sufferers being discouraged to seek help as it is frowned upon by many in South Korean culture. However, T1 has been more than supportive of Rekkles and his condition.
I have felt very supported by T1 with this; they always help me. In one of our first feedback meetings that we had with each other, I told them for example that I want the calendars to be detailed to the minute like “this is the time we eat” and “this is the time we play scrims”. Because otherwise the schedule would be “there are scrims today” but not when, and that freaks me out. I need to know when everything is. And I told them on a Wednesday and by Thursday, the whole calendar was filled with exact details. That made me so happy; that made my life 100 times easier because all that stress and panic I had from before just disappeared.
And it's from that exchange that Rekkles also learned about how he is learning to communicate his needs better as well as educate others about his condition. T1 is seen as one of, if not the biggest org in South Korea and its ability to care for its players comes second to none as Rekkles had also pointed out.
When asked by Caedral if he would step in to help the main T1 squad if Ryu “Keria” Min-seok fell sick, Rekkles said “I would do anything for my team no matter what. I love T1. They have been so good to me.” Rekkles also mentioned how at some point, he had asked T1 if they are going to replace him as he had felt that he wasn't performing as well as he should, to which the org responded with, “Absolutely not. What do you need?”
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He would go on to state that T1 is maybe the best team (he has been on) in a long time, despite it being in a different region with other problems, he still feels good about playing for the org. And when it comes to retirement, that is the furthest thing from Rekkles' mind as he wants to get at least get to that stage first.
You can check out the entire interview of the live stream on Caedral's YouTube channel, where Rekkles also touched on his brief meetings with T1's most successful player, Sang-hyeok “Faker” Lee amongst other things.
