SINGAPORE crashed out of the World Cyber Games (WCG) 2007 Grand Finals in Seattle, failing to get to the last 16 in all six games in which players were fielded.

The American team wrested back the championship it won in 2005 and lost to the South Koreans last year, bagging three golds, two silvers and a bronze in 12 games. Brazil and South Korea were joint second with two golds and a bronze each.

With 14 players, this was the largest contingent Singapore has sent to the annual cyber Olympics, which has been running since 2001. It was also the most experienced team with nine returning players, several of whom were representing Singapore for the third or fourth time.

But the team put up Singapore's worst performance. With the exception of Mohamed Phirkhan, the Fifa Soccer 2007 player, none on the team progressed beyond the first round.

The 18-year-old won all his Round 1 games to top his group but was knocked out in Round 2 by a Bulgarian who went on to finish third overall.

Team Titans, the Singapore Counter-Strike team, could have finished second in the first round to qualify for the last 16 after winning three of its four matches, but its win against Thailand was revoked after a controversial dispute.

Mr Prasad Paramajothi, the Titans' captain, said that one of the team members had 'died' in the game and was waiting for the rest to finish the round.

'He looked back at our supporters for a few seconds and the Thais accused us of peeking at their screen,' he said.

So although the Titans beat the Thais 22-8, they had to cede victory.

Mr Wilson 'Tetra' Chia, 25, thus far Singapore's only medal winner with a silver from the 2005 WCG finals, was ousted in Round 1 after finishing third in his group for the game Dead or Alive 4.

The US team has shown great progress, with the biggest win in its history. Several of its medal winners are professionals playing in the Championship Gaming Series (CGS), which is the new global pro-gaming league run by media giant News Corp. Each player is paid a yearly US$30,000 stipend plus winnings and gets airtime on TV.

These players are getting 'high-quality practice and are highly motivated with their professional status', said Mr Paramajothi.

With the WCG over, eyes are now on the CGS Pan-Asian regionals in Kuala Lumpur next week. Singapore will be up against teams from Kuala Lumpur, Shanghai, Seoul, Dubai and Sydney. The top four teams will be drafted into the CGS professional league.

'That's the dream of all gamers,' said Mr Paramajothi.