IEM EU interviews by crow - Intro

Europe's best duellers descend on Cologne, Germany this Thursday as the city plays host to the hotly anticipated IEM European Championship finals for QuakeLive. Two days of group play will be followed by a weekend of playoff action all live on ESL TV with $9,000 and six coveted spots at the global finals in March up for grabs.

With SK's newly reacquired Shane "rapha" Hendrixson out of the picture, the tag of favourite rests precariously on the only European yet to take home a major QuakeLive title. Former ESWC champion Maciej "av3k" Krzykowski is no stranger to the big stage but could face his biggest challenge yet this weekend with a field of talent so stacked that not even the favourites are guaranteed an easy ride.

Not for the first time, Anton "Cooller" Singov might prove the Pole's most dangerous foe. The Russian has edged his way back to the summit of professional Quake and will look to close the deal as early as possible in 2010. He'll be joined by Alexey "Cypher" Yanushevsky in many predictions for the top three, with the Belarusian looking to bounce back from an uncharacteristic stumble at Dreamhack.

The second seeds look no less daunting, with Mousesports legend Magnus "fox" Olsson joined by three players who've looked in top form in the latest online events. Sebastian "Spart1e" Siira in particular stands out as a player hungry for success in Germany and possessing the credentials to back up a sustained challenge. The fnatic star suffered a disasterous end to 2009 but has stepped up his practice regime in recent months, silencing his critis with four consecutive GDATA titles.

TEK9 kicks off coverage today as we quiz the contenders from av3k to Z4muZ, picking the brains of nine of the potential favourites. We find out how they've prepared, what they're aiming for and who they're afraid of.

Read on to find their answers...