- Rodrigo “Onur” Dalmagro, a respected Valorant coach, was deported from Brazil over lack of vaccination passport
- He made his position on vaccines clear and that cost him a job because of growing social media pressure
- Onur is to blame for failing to familiarize himself with traveling mandates, but he is not the sole party to blame in the situation either
Valorant coach Onur has been deported from Brazil over failure to provide a vaccination passport. It’s okay, though, because Onur says he is willing to stand up for his “beliefs” and lose a job in the process. He’s not okay with many of the controversies that followed, though.
Caught By Surprise, Denied a Career Opportunity
Brazil may have not led the world in terms of the rate of overall vaccinations against COVID-19, but the repercussions for those who fail to comply with health authorities’ mandates could be disruptive and frustrating. This is the case with Valorant coach Rodrigo “Onur” Dalmagro who said on Twitter that he is being deported from Brazil because he had failed to provide a valid vaccination passport.
Dalmagro said in a tweet that he was prepared to “lose a job” but remain “true to his beliefs.” Alright, hold on. Unless Dalmagro is a certified medical professional who is specializing in infectious diseases, his beliefs are actually worth zilch.
Worse, they are a conduit of dangerous social behavior that endangers the lives of others, or so the leading medical and health regulators worldwide say. On another note, failing to provide a vaccination passport, but knowingly entering a country that requires it is not okay, but Onur has claimed that he had not been informed about this.
Regardless, Onur has been a respected member of the Valorant society – until now, it seems. He was in Brazil hoping to secure a job with LOUD, as confirmed by him in a Twitlonger. However, following his comments, he said that the organization has officially dropped the talks. LOUD has not confirmed this interaction.
Who Was in the Wrong?
With the situation around COVID-19 evolving rapidly, it’s hard to assign blame. Travel mandates are difficult to follow, and you must make sure to check each country’s health authorities’ websites to know what to do.
As of December 18, Brazil imposed a rule that obligates anyone coming from abroad to provide a green certificate, which is proof that the person has been vaccinated. The mandate was published on the official governmental website.
Onur argued that he was not aware of the change of traveling requirements, but this is precisely why the onus is on the traveler to always double-check. In his defense, though, the airline that allowed him onboard did fail to inform him about the developing situation in the country.
In contrast, airlines in North America and Europe always have and issue updates to travelers as to what documents would be needed to enter national territory.
Riot Games Keeping Silent
Onur made another valid point. In his Twitlonger message, he explained that LOUD and himself have reached out to Riot Games to get their say-so on whether he can attend and participate in international competitions, but this produced no answer.
Onur further stressed that he never hid the fact that he was not ready to vaccinate and made his position clear from the very start of the negotiations with LOUD. The coach did say that LOUD did not initially back out of the deal but growing social media pressure had made the organization reconsider, which is a shame.
Onur is without a doubt to blame, but he is not alone in sharing that blame. Riot Games must make a stand and tell organizations how to act when it comes to competitions and yes, social media bashing should not result in people being denied the opportunity to work, especially when the things they say are not spoken with spite.
