Pokemon’s Most Iconic Competitor Makes Surprise Appearance After 10 Years

Ten years after winning the Pokemon World Championships, an iconic Pokemon competitor made a surprise appearance in this year’s competition. This weekend marks the Pokemon World Championships, the top competition for the Pokemon video games and the Pokemon Trading Card Game. One of the pillars of the weekend is the Video Game Championship (VGC) tournament, which features intense 2v2 Pokemon battles set in the current Pokemon video game. Hundreds of trainers compete in the three-day tournament, and this year’s tournament featured an appearance from a surprising Pokemon used by a past champion. 

Sejun Park made history when he won the 2014 Pokemon World Championships with a Pachirisu on his team, with the Pokemon playing a key role thanks to the use of several moves and abilities that directed attacks towards it instead of other Pokemon. Park has remained a world-ranked Pokemon VGC player over the last decade and competed in this year’s competition. Park’s performance in Day 1 of the tournament made waves as he brought back his famed Pachirisu exactly 10 years after his improbable run in the 2014 performance. Pachirisu wasn’t just a nostalgia play, as the Pokemon’s Volt Absorb ability came in handy against Raging Bolt, one of the dominant Pokemon in this year’s competition.

Park played in several high-profile battles during Day 1, most notably against Aaron Zheng in a match that made the Day 1 stream (seen in the video below). Unfortunately, Park came just short of making the Day 2 cut, finishing 5-3 for the day. 

While Pachirisu didn’t make the cut in this year’s VGC World Championships, a couple of unusual Pokemon did make it into Day 2. Exactly one Slowking and one Altaria made it into Day 2, as well as an Umbreon. Meanwhile, Urshifu remains one of the most popular Pokemon in the field, with over 60% of the Day 2 teams having the powerful Legendary Pokemon on their roster.