T1 head coach kkOma announces hiatus

On Monday, March 23, the Korean League of Legends team T1 announced that their head coach, Kim “kkOma” Jeong-gyun requested a temporary hiatus due to personal reasons.

With kkOma stepping away from the active roster, T1 will not be able to count on the Korean strategist for the start of the LCK 2026 season. In his place, T1 appointed Im “Tom” Jae-hyeon as an interim head coach.

Tom will work alongside Cho “Mata” Se-hyeong, who will retain his position as an assistant coach.

While kkOma’s absence will be noticeable, this will not be Tom’s first stint as T1’s interim head coach.

The 30-year-old originally joined T1 in November 2022 as an assistant coach. In July of next year, he took over for Bae “Bengi” Seong-woong, who was cut from the team due to the disappointing start to the season.

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During his first stint as T1’s head coach, Tom helped the Korean titans bounce back, reach the LCK finals, and win the LoL World Championship.

Despite the success Tom accomplished in the 2023 season, he was replaced by kkOma, who re-joined T1 as a head coach for the first time since 2019.

Under kkOma’s guidance, T1 went on to hoist two more Summoner’s Cups, becoming the first LoL team to secure back-to-back-to-back LoL World Championship titles. Besides the success on the Worlds stage, T1 also won the Esports World Cup and keSPA Cup.

With kkOma out of the picture, T1 are now in full preparation mode for LCK Rounds 1-2, where they’ll look to bounce back after a disappointing fourth-place finish in LCK Cup.

After a slow start to the season, the top LoL bookmakers are giving T1 a 20% chance of winning the elusive LCK title in summer, pricing the reigning world champions at +400 on the outright markets.

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