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83-588: For their inaugural season, the Titans signed a roster consisting of mostly members from Korean Overwatch Contenders team RunAway . In their first year, they reached all three of the stage playoffs, made two stage final appearances, won one stage title, finished at the top of the regular season standings, and reached the 2019 Grand Finals , where they ultimately lost to the San Francisco Shock . However, conflicts between players and management resulted in

166-625: A healthy diet are also recommended. Supportive care in severe cases includes treatment to relieve symptoms , fluid therapy , oxygen support and prone positioning , and medications or devices to support other affected vital organs. More severe cases may need treatment in hospital. In those with low oxygen levels, use of the glucocorticoid dexamethasone is recommended to reduce mortality. Noninvasive ventilation and, ultimately, admission to an intensive care unit for mechanical ventilation may be required to support breathing. Extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) has been used to address

249-627: A variant of concern (VoC) or a variant of interest (VoI). Many of these variants have shared the more infectious D614G . As of May 2023, the WHO had downgraded all variants of concern to previously circulating as these were no longer detected in new infections. Sub-lineages of the Omicron variant (BA.1 – BA.5) were considered separate VoCs by the WHO until they were downgraded in March 2023 as no longer widely circulating. As of 24 September 2024 ,

332-470: A 12-game losing streak to start the season. Vancouver picked up its first win of the season on August 6, 2021, with a 3–0 win over the Boston Uprising — their first win in nearly a year. The Titans ended the season with a 1–15 record, marking their worst finish in franchise history. After an abysmal 2021 season, the Titans again dropped their entire roster. The team picked up seven players, forming

415-493: A comprehensive international study. Such deaths include deaths due to healthcare capacity constraints and priorities, as well as reluctance to seek care (to avoid possible infection). Further research may help distinguish the proportions directly caused by COVID-19 from those caused by indirect consequences of the pandemic. In May 2022, the WHO estimated the number of excess deaths by the end of 2021 to be 14.9 million compared to 5.4 million reported COVID-19 deaths, with

498-581: A gaming facility at Adamas Esports Training and Performance at Fortius Sport & Health. With the emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic , the Overwatch League shifted all matches to an online format. The Titans players requested to move back to South Korea amid the pandemic, which was approved by Aquilini management. However, Aquilini would not fund the team a team house, nor would they provide a training facility for them to practice at. In South Korea,

581-595: A large number of people". During the COVID-19 pandemic, as with other pandemics, the meaning of this term has been challenged. The end of a pandemic or other epidemic only rarely involves the total disappearance of a disease, and historically, much less attention has been given to defining the ends of epidemics than their beginnings. The ends of particular epidemics have been defined in a variety of ways, differing according to academic field, and differently based on location and social group. An epidemic's end can be considered

664-451: A median range of 0.24% to 1.49%. IFRs rise as a function of age (from 0.002% at age 10 and 0.01% at age 25, to 0.4% at age 55, 1.4% at age 65, 4.6% at age 75, and 15% at age 85). These rates vary by a factor of ≈10,000 across the age groups. For comparison, the IFR for middle-aged adults is two orders of magnitude higher than the annualised risk of a fatal automobile accident and much higher than

747-602: A mixed nationality roster, in the offseason, including former Toronto Defiant hitscan player Luka "Aspire" Rolovic and former Atlanta Reign support player Petja "Masaa" Kantanen. On December 1, 2018, the Aquilini Group officially unveiled the Vancouver Titans brand. The name Titans is "indicative of the traits associated with the Sasquatch – a powerful, imposing, and mythical being." The logo features

830-516: A one-day notice to the player's current team before doing so. Should the OWL team decide to sign a Contenders player, the OWL team may have to pay a one-time buyout fee to the Contenders team, which is up to 100% of the players annual base salary. Contenders teams and their affiliate OWL team have "right-to-match" clauses, which will allow the parent team to match any other OWL offer within seven days of

913-824: A random sample have consistently found that total infections considerably exceed the reported case counts. Many countries, early on, had official policies to not test those with only mild symptoms. The strongest risk factors for severe illness are obesity, complications of diabetes , anxiety disorders, and the total number of conditions. During the start of the COVID-19 pandemic it was not clear whether young people were less likely to be infected, or less likely to develop symptoms and be tested. A retrospective cohort study in China found that children and adults were just as likely to be infected. Among more thorough studies, preliminary results from 9 April 2020 found that in Gangelt ,

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996-466: A reported $ 30 million to $ 60 million. "Esports has seen extraordinary success and continues to be one of the fastest growing industries in the world," said Aquilini Group managing director Francesco Aquilini in a statement. "We can't wait to launch the team in Vancouver." On October 18, the team announced they had partnered with Canadian esports organization Luminosity Gaming to add esports expertise to

1079-461: A social phenomenon, not just a biological one. Time reported in March 2024 that expert opinions differ on whether or not COVID-19 is considered endemic or pandemic, and that the WHO continued to call the disease a pandemic on its website. During the initial outbreak in Wuhan , the virus and disease were commonly referred to as "coronavirus", "Wuhan coronavirus", "the coronavirus outbreak" and

1162-451: A test. Conversely, deaths of people who died from underlying conditions following a positive test may be included. Countries such as Belgium include deaths from suspected cases, including those without a test, thereby increasing counts. Official death counts have been claimed to underreport the actual death toll, because excess mortality (the number of deaths in a period compared to a long-term average) data show an increase in deaths that

1245-518: Is associated with COVID-19 and is reported in as many as 88% of cases. The disease is mainly transmitted via the respiratory route when people inhale droplets and small airborne particles (that form an aerosol ) that infected people exhale as they breathe, talk, cough, sneeze, or sing. Infected people are more likely to transmit COVID-19 when they are physically close to other non-infected individuals. However, infection can occur over longer distances, particularly indoors. SARS‑CoV‑2 belongs to

1328-626: Is determined by which team win three maps first until the Grand Finals, which is first-to-four. The top four teams from Playoffs move on to the next season's Contenders Week 1, while the bottom four teams drop to the next season's Trials Week 1. Additionally, the top performers in each regional playoff has the chance to qualify for international events. Since 2019, the top teams from the Pacific and Atlantic Conference in each year's first season have competed in double-elimination tournaments, called

1411-611: Is discouraged altogether by the World Health Organization (WHO), due to limited evidence of its efficacy. The severity of COVID-19 varies. It may take a mild course with few or no symptoms, resembling other common upper respiratory diseases such as the common cold . In 3–4% of cases (7.4% for those over age 65) symptoms are severe enough to cause hospitalisation. Mild cases typically recover within two weeks, while those with severe or critical diseases may take three to six weeks to recover. Among those who have died,

1494-905: Is divided into two conferences, the Atlantic Conference and the Pacific Conferences. Each division is divided into a total of seven regions; the Pacific Division consists of the Australia, China, Korea, and Pacific regions, and the Atlantic Division consists of the Europe, North America, and South America regions. Each region is broken down into three divisions: Additionally, each region's promotion and relegation into several phases: Points are awarded only in Contenders and are based on placements in

1577-439: Is intended to provide acquired immunity against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS‑CoV‑2), the virus that causes coronavirus disease 2019 ( COVID-19 ). Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, an established body of knowledge existed about the structure and function of coronaviruses causing diseases like severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) and Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS). This knowledge accelerated

1660-419: Is no limit to how many players may be signed to a team, all Contenders teams may have only eight players designated as eligible to compete in a given week. The minimum age to play in Contenders is 13, except in the China region, where the minimum age is 16. In 2018, the Overwatch League allowed OWL teams to sign up to four players to two-way contracts with their associated academy team. A maximum of four of

1743-490: Is not explained by COVID-19 deaths alone. Using such data, estimates of the true number of deaths from COVID-19 worldwide have included a range from 18.2 to 33.5 million (≈27.4 million) by 18 November 2023 by The Economist , as well as over 18.5 million by 1 April 2023 by the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation and ≈18.2 million (earlier) deaths between 1 January 2020, and 31 December 2021, by

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1826-452: Is the ratio of deaths to diagnoses. This metric can be misleading because of the delay between symptom onset and death and because testing focuses on symptomatic individuals. Based on Johns Hopkins University statistics, the global CFR was 1.02 percent (6,881,955 deaths for 676,609,955 cases) as of 10 March 2023. The number varies by region and has generally declined over time. Several variants have been named by WHO and labelled as

1909-406: Is the seventh known coronavirus to infect people, after 229E , NL63 , OC43 , HKU1 , MERS-CoV , and the original SARS-CoV . The standard method of testing for presence of SARS-CoV-2 is a nucleic acid test , which detects the presence of viral RNA fragments. As these tests detect RNA but not infectious virus, its "ability to determine duration of infectivity of patients is limited." The test

1992-614: Is typically done on respiratory samples obtained by a nasopharyngeal swab ; however, a nasal swab or sputum sample may also be used. The WHO has published several testing protocols for the disease. Preventive measures to reduce the chances of infection include getting vaccinated, staying at home or spending more time outdoors, avoiding crowded places, keeping distance from others, wearing a mask in public, ventilating indoor spaces, managing potential exposure durations, washing hands with soap and water often and for at least twenty seconds, practising good respiratory hygiene, and avoiding touching

2075-514: The Huanan Seafood Wholesale Market there, but it is possible that human-to-human transmission began earlier. Molecular clock analysis suggests that the first cases were likely to have been between October and November 2019. The scientific consensus is that the virus is most likely of a zoonotic origin, from bats or another closely related mammal. While other explanations such as speculations that SARS-CoV-2

2158-407: The Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation estimating the true number of cases as of early 2022 to be in the billions. One measure that public health officials and policymakers have used to monitor the pandemic and guide decision-making is the test positivity rate ("percent positive"). According to Johns Hopkins in 2020, one benchmark for a "too high" per cent positive is 5%, which was used by

2241-542: The Overwatch League , with regions in North America and Europe. Teams competed in an online open qualifier known as 2017 Season Zero, where the top eight teams from Europe, the top six teams from North America, and invited teams Team Envy and Rogue would compete in 2017 Season 1. In 2018, Blizzard merged Contenders with existing regional tournaments into a structure to support the Overwatch League; it

2324-602: The Pacific Northwest folklore figure with a 'V' in the nose and a mountain range on the top of its head in the team's colours of blue, green, and white. The colours represent the greenery that surrounds the Pacific Ocean in the Vancouver area and are similar of that of the Vancouver Canucks ' official colours. "In choosing our identity we wanted to introduce a team that would resonate with fans in

2407-551: The Shanghai Dragons . Behind a core starting lineup of Park "Bumper" Sang-beom, Choi "JJANU" Hyun-woo, Kim "Haksal" Hyo-jong , Seo "SeoMinSoo" Min-soo, Kim "SLIME" Seong-jun, and Lee "Twilight" Ju-seok, the Titans posted a 7–0 record in the first stage of the season. The team capped off the stage running through the Stage 1 playoffs, going on to defeat the San Francisco Shock , 4–3, in the Stage 1 finals. The Titans reached

2490-591: The Stage 2 finals, going undefeated in the process, where they again faced the Shock. However, their undefeated streak came to an end, as they lost the match, 2–4. The Titans recorded an OWL record 19-game regular season winning streak, which was snapped Stage 3 , as they lost their first regular season match on June 23, against the Los Angeles Valiant . While they qualified for the Stage 3 playoffs, Vancouver

2573-602: The basic reproduction number (R 0 ) for COVID-19 in January 2020 were between 1.4 and 2.5, but a subsequent analysis claimed that it may be about 5.7 (with a 95 per cent confidence interval of 3.8 to 8.9). In December 2021, the number of cases continued to climb due to several factors, including new COVID-19 variants. As of that 28   December, 282,790,822 individuals worldwide had been confirmed as infected. As of 14 April 2022 , over 500 million cases were confirmed globally. Most cases are unconfirmed, with

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2656-474: The variants of interest as specified by the World Health Organization are BA.2.86 and JN.1, and the variants under monitoring are JN.1.7, KP.2, KP.3, KP.3.1.1, JN.1.18, LB.1, and XEC. Symptoms of COVID-19 are variable, ranging from mild symptoms to severe illness. Common symptoms include headache, loss of smell and taste , nasal congestion and runny nose , cough, muscle pain , sore throat , fever, diarrhoea , and breathing difficulties . People with

2739-429: The "Wuhan coronavirus outbreak", with the disease sometimes called "Wuhan pneumonia ". In January 2020, the WHO recommended 2019-nCoV and 2019-nCoV acute respiratory disease as interim names for the virus and disease per 2015 international guidelines against using geographical locations (e.g. Wuhan, China), animal species, or groups of people in disease and virus names in part to prevent social stigma . WHO finalised

2822-446: The OWL team's roster limit and OWC team's roster limit. In addition, two-way players had to be paid the same minimum salary ($ 50,000 as of 2018) and benefits as any other Overwatch League player. In August 2020, the OWL removed the limit on the number of players that a team could have on a two-way contract. Any Overwatch League team may contact, tryout, and sign any player competing in Contenders during specified periods, but must give

2905-557: The Pacific Northwest," Aquilini Group managing editor Francesco Aquilini said in a statement. "With a local feel and an experienced, skilled team, we are ready and can't wait to have the Titans compete at the highest level in esports." In August 2019, the Vancouver Titans announced a partnership with Circle K on limited edition souvenir cups that featured images of Titans players Twilight, Haksal, Bumper, and SeoMinSoo. Latest roster transaction: July 11, 2023. Rookie of

2988-599: The Pacific Showdown and Atlantic Showdown, respectively. Similarly, at the end of each year's second season, the top teams from the every region compete in The Gauntlet, which consists of group stages culminating in a double-elimination tournament. Ownership models vary across Overwatch Contenders. Any team that moves from the Open Division to Contenders Trials must have a proper team owner; that is,

3071-482: The Shock in the Grand Finals on September 29. However, the Titans were held without winning a single map in the series, losing 0–4, and finished as the league's runners-up. Following the 2019 season, the Vancouver Titans parted ways with four of their players, including Bumper and TiZi. The team signed two former Seoul Dynasty players in tank Baek "Fissure" Chan-hyung and support Ryu "ryujehong" Je-hong . The team began their season living in Vancouver and practicing at

3154-476: The Titans organization parting ways with their entire roster at the beginning of the 2020 season. Since then, the Titans have failed to reach any playoffs and had their worst season in 2021, ending it with a 1–15 regular season record. On September 7, 2018, Activision Blizzard announced that NHL 's Vancouver Canucks ownership Aquilini Group had purchased a slot for the Vancouver-based franchise for

3237-442: The Titans players encountered technical difficulties playing from their homes and eventually boycotted practice. According to Tim Holloway, esports director of Aquilini Group, the Titans originally planned to compete in the league's newly formed Asia region, but the time difference "made it difficult for management and the home fanbase to connect with the team and technical challenges for the players playing from home further exacerbated

3320-640: The WHO in the past. As of 10 March 2023, more than 6.88   million deaths had been attributed to COVID-19. The first confirmed death was in Wuhan on 9 January 2020. These numbers vary by region and over time, influenced by testing volume, healthcare system quality, treatment options, government response, time since the initial outbreak, and population characteristics, such as age, sex, and overall health. Multiple measures are used to quantify mortality. Official death counts typically include people who died after testing positive. Such counts exclude deaths without

3403-419: The WHO, US, European Union, and Australia. On 12 November 2022, the WHO released its Global Vaccine Market Report. The report indicated that "inequitable distribution is not unique to COVID-19 vaccines"; countries that are not economically strong struggle to obtain vaccines. On 14 November 2022, the first inhalable vaccine was introduced, developed by Chinese biopharmaceutical company CanSino Biologics , in

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3486-474: The Year Role Star selections All-Star Game selections All-Star Game head coaches Overwatch Contenders Overwatch Contenders ( OWC ) was an international esports league for the video game Overwatch that is organized by Blizzard Entertainment . The series acts as the development league for aspiring Overwatch League (OWL) professionals. Founded in 2017, Contenders

3569-448: The broad family of viruses known as coronaviruses . It is a positive-sense single-stranded RNA (+ssRNA) virus, with a single linear RNA segment. Coronaviruses infect humans, other mammals, including livestock and companion animals, and avian species. Human coronaviruses are capable of causing illnesses ranging from the common cold to more severe diseases such as Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS, fatality rate ≈34%). SARS-CoV-2

3652-648: The centre of a major infection cluster in Germany, 15 per cent of a population sample tested positive for antibodies . Screening for COVID-19 in pregnant women in New York City , and blood donors in the Netherlands, found rates of positive antibody tests that indicated more infections than reported. Seroprevalence -based estimates are conservative as some studies show that persons with mild symptoms do not have detectable antibodies. Initial estimates of

3735-760: The city of Shanghai, China. For the first two years of the pandemic, no specific and effective treatment or cure was available. In 2021, the European Medicines Agency's (EMA) Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) approved the oral antiviral protease inhibitor , Paxlovid (nirmatrelvir plus the HIV antiviral ritonavir ), to treat adult patients. FDA later gave it an EUA. Most cases of COVID-19 are mild. In these, supportive care includes medication such as paracetamol or NSAIDs to relieve symptoms (fever, body aches, cough), adequate intake of oral fluids and rest. Good personal hygiene and

3818-484: The cumulative number of infected individuals (including asymptomatic and undiagnosed infections and excluding vaccinated infected individuals). It is expressed in percentage points. Other studies refer to this metric as the infection fatality risk . In November 2020, a review article in Nature reported estimates of population-weighted IFRs for various countries, excluding deaths in elderly care facilities, and found

3901-441: The development of various vaccine platforms during early 2020. The initial focus of SARS-CoV-2 vaccines was on preventing symptomatic and severe illness. The COVID-19 vaccines are widely credited for their role in reducing the severity and death caused by COVID-19. As of March 2023, more than 5.5 billion people had received one or more doses (11.8 billion in total) in over 197 countries. The Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine

3984-513: The eyes, nose, or mouth with unwashed hands. Those diagnosed with COVID-19 or who believe they may be infected are advised by healthcare authorities to stay home except to get medical care, call ahead before visiting a healthcare provider, wear a face mask before entering the healthcare provider's office and when in any room or vehicle with another person, cover coughs and sneezes with a tissue, regularly wash hands with soap and water and avoid sharing personal household items. A COVID-19 vaccine

4067-530: The general public beginning in December 2020, made available through government and international programs such as COVAX , aiming to provide vaccine equity . Treatments include novel antiviral drugs and symptom control. Common mitigation measures during the public health emergency included travel restrictions , lockdowns , business restrictions and closures, workplace hazard controls , mask mandates , quarantines, testing systems, and contact tracing of

4150-665: The infected. The pandemic caused severe social and economic disruption around the world, including the largest global recession since the Great Depression . Widespread supply shortages , including food shortages , were caused by supply chain disruptions and panic buying . Reduced human activity led to an unprecedented temporary decrease in pollution . Educational institutions and public areas were partially or fully closed in many jurisdictions, and many events were cancelled or postponed during 2020 and 2021. Telework became much more common for white-collar workers as

4233-487: The issue of respiratory failure. Existing drugs such as hydroxychloroquine , lopinavir/ritonavir , and ivermectin are not recommended by US or European health authorities, as there is no good evidence they have any useful effect. The antiviral remdesivir is available in the US, Canada, Australia, and several other countries, with varying restrictions; however, it is not recommended for use with mechanical ventilation, and

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4316-576: The majority of the unreported 9.5 million deaths believed to be direct deaths due the virus, rather than indirect deaths. Some deaths were because people with other conditions could not access medical services . A December 2022 WHO study estimated excess deaths from the pandemic during 2020 and 2021, again concluding ≈14.8 million excess early deaths occurred, reaffirming and detailing their prior calculations from May as well as updating them, addressing criticisms. These numbers do not include measures like years of potential life lost and may make

4399-502: The number of teams in each region to eight, while dividing the North American region into East and West divisions. Blizzard also added a regional limit of the number of "import players", which are those that live outside the division's region, to a maximum of three. Blizzard made several changes for Contenders for the 2020 year after the rise of the COVID-19 pandemic . The North America East and West regions were merged back into

4482-410: The offer being made. COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic ), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 ( SARS-CoV-2 ), began with an outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan , China, in December 2019. It spread to other areas of Asia, and then worldwide in early 2020. The World Health Organization (WHO) declared

4565-495: The official names COVID-19 and SARS-CoV-2 on 11 February 2020. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus explained: CO   for corona , VI   for virus , D   for disease and 19 for when the outbreak was first identified (31 December 2019). WHO additionally uses "the COVID-19 virus" and "the virus responsible for COVID-19" in public communications. WHO named variants of concern and variants of interest using Greek letters . The initial practice of naming them according to where

4648-489: The organization. On December 1, a video revealed the Vancouver Titans' brand during the second intermission of a Vancouver Canucks game, concluding with "Today, we release the Titans." The team also announced that it had signed all eight members of the Korean Overwatch Contenders champions RunAway and Hwang "Pajion" Ji-sub as the team's head coach. Vancouver's first OWL match was a 4–0 sweep over

4731-534: The outbreak a public health emergency of international concern (PHEIC) on 30 January 2020, and assessed the outbreak as having become a pandemic on 11 March. COVID-19 symptoms range from asymptomatic to deadly, but most commonly include fever, sore throat , nocturnal cough , and fatigue. Transmission of the virus is often through airborne particles . Mutations have produced many strains (variants) with varying degrees of infectivity and virulence . COVID-19 vaccines were developed rapidly and deployed to

4814-420: The owner must not be player or by an individual acting as a proxy for a player. Contenders teams may be affiliated with an OWL team, known as an "academy team", and players can be freely moved between these affiliated teams during set periods of each OWL season. As such, there are three main models for ownership of a Contenders team: OWL affiliates, third-party sponsored teams, and unsigned rosters. While there

4897-407: The pandemic 2021's leading cause of death . The time between symptom onset and death ranges from   6 to 41 days, typically about 14 days. Mortality rates increase as a function of age. People at the greatest mortality risk are the elderly and those with underlying conditions. The infection fatality ratio (IFR) is the cumulative number of deaths attributed to the disease divided by

4980-495: The pandemic evolved. Misinformation circulated through social media and mass media , and political tensions intensified . The pandemic raised issues of racial and geographic discrimination , health equity , and the balance between public health imperatives and individual rights . The WHO ended the PHEIC for COVID-19 on 5 May 2023. The disease has continued to circulate, but as of 2024, experts were uncertain as to whether it

5063-478: The population's age structure and the age-specific pattern of infections. There have also been reviews that have compared the fatality rate of this pandemic with prior pandemics, such as MERS-CoV. For comparison the infection mortality rate of seasonal flu in the United States is 0.1%, which is 13 times lower than COVID-19. Another metric in assessing death rate is the case fatality ratio (CFR), which

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5146-462: The risk of dying from seasonal influenza . In December 2020, a systematic review and meta-analysis estimated that population-weighted IFR was 0.5% to 1% in some countries (France, Netherlands, New Zealand, and Portugal), 1% to 2% in other countries (Australia, England, Lithuania, and Spain), and about 2.5% in Italy. This study reported that most of the differences reflected corresponding differences in

5229-496: The same infection may have different symptoms, and their symptoms may change over time. Three common clusters of symptoms have been identified: one respiratory symptom cluster with cough, sputum , shortness of breath, and fever; a musculoskeletal symptom cluster with muscle and joint pain, headache, and fatigue; a cluster of digestive symptoms with abdominal pain, vomiting, and diarrhoea. In people without prior ear, nose, and throat disorders, loss of taste combined with loss of smell

5312-512: The season, finishing with a 6–15 regular season record. A 0–3 loss to the Washington Justice in the North America play-in tournament on September 3 ended the team's season. Prior to the start of the 2021 season , the Titans retained half of their roster from the previous season and picked up underperforming players who were dropped or traded from other OWL teams to fill their holes. The team did not outperform expectations, going on

5395-460: The single North America region, reducing the total amount of regions back to seven, and the Atlantic and Pacific Divisions were renamed to the Atlantic and Pacific Conferences. Aside from China, the regional player restrictions was also reverted, now allowing any number of players from any region to be on a team in any region. The number of two-way players allowed to compete on a given day for a team

5478-450: The situation." Unable to resolve differences between players and management, the Titans organization parted ways with tank JJANU and head coach Pajion on April 30 and released the rest of their roster on May 6. Days later, the Titans announced the hiring of Steven "Flubby" Coronel as their new head coach and signed a roster consisting entirely of the players from North American Overwatch Contenders team Second Wind. The team struggled throughout

5561-422: The standard "league" format used in previous seasons, North America and Europe shifting to monthly tournaments, South America shifting to a hybrid format between the two, and China making no changes. Additionally, the Pacific region of Contenders was cancelled; Blizzard committed US$ 100,000 to "exploring ways to build a unique experience for Pacific players" in the region. In February 2021, South America Contenders

5644-411: The time from symptom onset to death has ranged from two to eight weeks. Prolonged prothrombin time and elevated C-reactive protein levels on admission to the hospital are associated with severe course of COVID-19 and with a transfer to intensive care units (ICU). Between 5% and 50% of COVID-19 patients experience long COVID , a condition characterised by long-term consequences persisting after

5727-482: The top teams from the 2021 season being directly invited to the first event of the year without needing to qualify. On January 23, 2024, Blizzard announced that the Overwatch League and Contenders had officially folded; on the same day, they would announce a multi-year deal with ESL FACEIT Group and WDG Esports to create the Overwatch Champions Series (OWCS) to replace the OWL. The league

5810-486: The total to seven. Further, Blizzard gave the opportunity to the top eight teams from the Open Division within each region to compete in Contenders Trials, which would be held at the end of each Contenders season; the qualified teams would take place in a promotion-relegation tournament for the chance to compete in the next Contenders season. For its second year in 2019, Blizzard adjusted the format by reducing

5893-505: The tournament. First place is awarded 100 points, second is awarded 50 points, third and fourth are awarded 25 points, fifth through eighth are awarded 20 points, and ninth through twelfth are awarded 10 points. Each region's playoffs, known as the Contenders Playoffs, is a double-elimination tournament . The top eight teams, based on points, from each region will qualify for their region's playoffs. Each playoff match winner

5976-405: The two-way players could play in a single Contenders match, and a two-way player could not play in a Contenders match and Overwatch League match in the same week. These players would spend the majority of their time on a team's Contenders roster, but could freely move to their respective OWL team for up to two matches in any stage of regular season. Players under two-way contracts counted against both

6059-694: The typical convalescence period of the disease. The most commonly reported clinical presentations are fatigue and memory problems, as well as malaise , headaches, shortness of breath , loss of smell, muscle weakness , low fever and cognitive dysfunction . Many countries attempted to slow or stop the spread of COVID-19 by recommending, mandating or prohibiting behaviour changes, while others relied primarily on providing information. Measures ranged from public advisories to stringent lockdowns. Outbreak control strategies are divided into elimination and mitigation. Experts differentiate between elimination strategies (known as " zero-COVID ") that aim to completely stop

6142-543: The variants were identified (e.g. Delta began as the " Indian variant") is no longer common. A more systematic naming scheme reflects the variant's PANGO lineage (e.g., Omicron 's lineage is B.1.1.529) and is used for other variants. SARS-CoV-2 is a virus closely related to bat coronaviruses , pangolin coronaviruses, and SARS-CoV . The first known outbreak (the 2019–2020 COVID-19 outbreak in mainland China ) started in Wuhan , Hubei, China, in December 2019. Many early cases were linked to people who had visited

6225-443: Was accidentally released from a laboratory have been proposed, as of 2021 these were not supported by evidence. Official "case" counts refer to the number of people who have been tested for COVID-19 and whose test has been confirmed positive according to official protocols whether or not they experienced symptomatic disease. Due to the effect of sampling bias , studies which obtain a more accurate number by extrapolating from

6308-637: Was also named the OWL Rookie of the Year. In the season playoffs, Bumper and TiZi split playing time, with TiZi taking more time as the playoffs went on. Vancouver ran through the upper bracket of the season playoffs , ultimately defeating the New York Excelsior , 4–3, in the upper bracket finals to advance to the Grand Finals . In a rematch of the Stage 1 and Stage 2 finals, the Titans faced

6391-481: Was cancelled, leaving only five regions. Teams in South America, as well as the previously cancelled Pacific, would be able to qualify for international Contenders tournaments via third-party tournaments in their respective regions. For the 2022 year, Overwatch Contenders, along with the Overwatch League, will be played on a beta build of Overwatch 2 . It will also shift to an open-registration format, with

6474-487: Was created in part to consolidate existing regional tournaments into a structure to support the Overwatch League, including the Overwatch Apex tournament, Overwatch Premier Series, and Overwatch Pacific Championship. Overwatch Contenders ceased operations in 2024, coinciding with the end of the Overwatch League. The Contenders league was launched in 2017 to be a developmental league for players aspiring to play in

6557-410: Was defeated by the Shanghai Dragons in the semifinals round. The league introduced a 2-2-2 role lock for Stage 4; on August 16, the Titans signed tank player Hwang "TiZi" Jang-hyeon, who was a former player for RunAway. Vancouver ended the regular season with a league-best 25–3 record and the top seed in the season playoffs. Haksal and Twilight were awarded Role Star commendations on the season; Haksal

6640-492: Was divided into five divisions with 12 teams each: Korea (replacing the Overwatch Apex tournament), China (replacing the Overwatch Premier Series), and Pacific (replacing Overwatch Pacific Championship for other Asian-Pacific countries), and adding in North America and European divisions. Prior to the second 2018 Contenders season, Blizzard added two additional divisions, Australia and South America, bringing

6723-468: Was increased from two to four. Blizzard also made a major format change for 2020 year. The qualification to make regional playoffs was changed from a round-robin format to a point system, which includes four Contenders tournaments that will dictate the number of points a team earns based on their finishing place. After the first half of the 2020 season, Overwatch Contenders adjusted the structure of each region, with South Korea and Australia reverting back to

6806-457: Was still a pandemic. Pandemics and their ends are not well-defined, and whether or not one has ended differs according to the definition used. As of 24 November 2024, COVID-19 has caused 7,075,455 confirmed deaths. The COVID-19 pandemic ranks as the fifth- deadliest pandemic or epidemic in history . In epidemiology , a pandemic is defined as "an epidemic occurring over a very wide area, crossing international boundaries, and usually affecting

6889-509: Was the most widely used. According to a June 2022 study, COVID-19 vaccines prevented an additional 14.4 million to 19.8 million deaths in 185 countries and territories from 8 December 2020 to 8 December 2021. On 8 November 2022, the first recombinant protein-based COVID-19 vaccine (Novavax's booster Nuvaxovid ) was authorised for use in adults in the United Kingdom. It has subsequently received endorsement/authorisation from

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