Malek "maleK" Bennouioua, a fixture of French Counter-Strike as both a player and a content creator, has passed away at age 35.
Career
- Nationality: French
- Started competing: CS:Source in 2011
- Teams: beGenius, Epsilon (French sub-top tier) — teammate of Audric "JACKZ" Jug at Epsilon
- Transition: retired from competition to full-time content creation
Community reach
- Over 130,000 YouTube subscribers on his main channel
- 155,000 Twitch followers
- Best known for tutorials that helped teach Counter-Strike fundamentals to new players
Tributes
- Dan "apEX" Madesclaire: "Rest in peace, maleK."
- Richard "shox" Papillon noted their 20-year connection.
- Multiple prominent French pros expressed shock and grief.
Note
No official cause of death was stated. One community tribute closed with the message "don't stay alone when things aren't okay" — a reminder to anyone struggling to reach out for support.
Source: HLTV.org — /news/45585/malek-passes-away-aged-35
