Paintball Asia League Series
Paintball Asia League Series (PALS), also styled Paintball-Asia League Series, was an international tournament paintball circuit originating in Malaysia. The organisers identified 2005 as its founding year, following their involvement in the Nation Cup and Asia Pacific Paintball Championship.[1]
PALS held international competitions in several Asian countries. Its principal Malaysian championship was Paintball World Cup Asia, which regularly served as a season finale. Individual event victories and overall season championships were separate honours.[1][2][3]
| Abbreviation | PALS |
|---|---|
| Origin | Malaysia |
| Established | 2005, according to the organisers' historical account |
| Sport | Tournament paintball |
| Documented formats | Five-player competition, Race-to and X-Ball |
| Historical organiser | PALS Event Sdn Bhd |
| Principal championship | Paintball World Cup Asia |
| Associated organisations | Asia Pacific Paintball Federation; United Paintball Federation |
History
Origins
The organisers' historical account identifies the 2004 Nation Cup and Asia Pacific Paintball Championship 2005 as predecessors of PALS and World Cup Asia. It also records their involvement in the Malaysian Paintball Official Circuit, first organised in 2004.[1]
On 4 January 2006, PALS announced its participation in the United Paintball Federation. The announcement identified the Asia Pacific Paintball Federation as the continental organisation covering Asia and the Pacific, with PALS among its associated tournament series.[4]
The 2006 International Thailand Paintball Championship was identified as the second PALS leg. The inaugural 2006 Paintball World Cup Asia followed in Malaysia that December.[5][6]
Regional competition
The organisers reported that PALS events had been held in Thailand, Taiwan and the Philippines, with affiliated events hosted in Singapore and Indonesia by promoting partners.[1]
The 2010 calendar included competitions in Pattaya, Clark Field and Kuala Lumpur. Organiser information identified Bangkok, Clark and Langkawi as the locations of the three 2011 legs.[7][8][9]
Australia's Super 7s Tournament Series was recognised as a PALS feeder series in May 2011. Mike Whybrew and Adam Connolly were named as PALS Australasia representatives.[10]
Singapore hosted a combined PALS and Singapore Paintball Series tournament in June 2015, followed by another PALS Singapore event in May 2016.[11][12]
Seasons and events
The following index links the yearly season articles and documented individual tournaments. Earlier seasons have incomplete surviving calendars.
Event records and contemporary reports document the competitions listed above.[2][5][6][7][8][9][11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18]
Cancelled, postponed and relocated events
The 2007 International Thailand Paintball Championship was initially announced for 24–26 August in Thailand. A subsequent PALS notice stated that it would move to Kuala Lumpur, citing anticipated security concerns and the withdrawal of a government-agency sponsor. The Independence Cup was subsequently advertised at Xtion Paintball Park with competition on 25–26 August and a captains' meeting on 24 August.[19][20]
Contemporary reporting in Paintball Sports stated that planned 2008 rounds in Taiwan, the Philippines and Thailand were cancelled, leaving World Cup Asia as the season's only completed event.[21]
A proposed China Cup in Hainan appeared in an early 2011 calendar but was subsequently postponed.[22]
Later database entries
The PBLeagues PALS directory also includes Malaysian domestic tournaments during 2017 and a Malaysia Open Paintball Players League event on 13–14 January 2018.[2]
Their inclusion in the directory does not establish that they formed rounds of a complete international PALS championship.
Selected season history
2007
Reaper won Division 1 at World Cup Asia, while Datis won the overall PALS Division 1 championship. Global Gutz and Zealous were reported as the Division 2 and Division 3 season champions respectively.[3]
2010
The Philippine round took place at Stotsenberg Parade Ground, Clark Field. PbRack Team USA won Division 1, Xtioneers 2 won Division 2 and Splatmasters won Division 3.[8]
World Cup Asia concluded the season at Padang Merbok in Kuala Lumpur. Datis won Division 1 and were also identified as the overall PALS champions.[7]
2012
Shockwave Canada won Division 1 at the opening Bangkok event. The second round in Putrajaya combined the Malaysian Open, PALS and an MPOC round.[13][14]
Infernal won Division 1 at World Cup Asia and were reported as the overall PALS champions.[23]
2013
The season included Bangkok, Kajang and Langkawi events. Xtioneers won Division 1 in Thailand, STK won the Malaysian Open and Johannesburg Dynamix won World Cup Asia.[15][16][17]
The overall season champions were Xtioneers in Division 1, Republic CMX in Division 2, Duckside in Division 3 and Kucha Lana in Division 4. All four were Malaysian teams.[17]
2014
The published 2014 season rankings counted only each team's highest event score in Divisions 1–3. Aisawan headed Division 1, SPEED Aisawan headed Division 2 and Virgin Aisawan headed Division 3.[18]
2015–2017
The 2015 Singapore tournament combined SPS and PALS competition. Infernal won Division 1, SPEED won Division 2, SPEED Overshoot won Division 3 and Monstarz SG won Division 4.[11]
The surviving 2015 PBLeagues season table contains World Cup Asia points but no Bangkok scores and no Singapore column. It therefore does not provide a combined points record for all three documented rounds.[24]
The 2016 Asia and Asia Pacific Cup in Putrajaya was listed as the first PALS leg. Singapore followed in May, with RAW Empire winning Division 1, before World Cup Asia in Kuala Lumpur in October.[12][25]
The surviving 2016 and 2017 season standings pages contain no team totals.[26][27]
Competition structure
Divisions and formats
Divisional names, eligibility and match formats varied between events and seasons.
The 2007 Independence Cup offered five-player capture-the-flag matches lasting five minutes. Divisions 1 and 2 permitted ramping capped at 15 balls per second, while Division 3 used capped semi-automatic firing.[20]
Later tournaments used Race-to and X-Ball formats. The 2015 Singapore event advertised Race to 4 in Division 1, Race to 3 in Division 2, Race to 2 in Division 3 and Race to 1 in Division 4.[11]
Some World Cup Asia editions also included a separate professional Intercontinental Cup. Other editions offered national-team competitions.[17][24]
Event and season results
An individual tournament placing and an overall season placing were separate results. Reaper's World Cup Asia victory and Datis's season championship in 2007 illustrate this distinction.[3]
Points-counting methods must be interpreted using the records for the relevant season. The published 2014 rankings used each team's highest event score, while the surviving 2015–2017 records have substantial gaps.[18][24][26][27]
Related competitions and organisations
The Malaysian Paintball Official Circuit was a separate domestic circuit with organisational connections to PALS. The 2012 and 2013 Malaysian Open tournaments served both competitions.[14][16]
The Singapore Paintball Series jointly featured with PALS in the June 2015 Singapore tournament.[11]
PALS's January 2006 announcement placed the series within the international framework of the Asia Pacific Paintball Federation and United Paintball Federation.[4]
See also
- Paintball World Cup Asia
- Malaysian Paintball Official Circuit
- Singapore Paintball Series
- Asia Pacific Paintball Federation
- United Paintball Federation
- Paintball in Asia
References
- Paintball World Cup Asia 2012, Play For Fun, 1 October 2012. Reproduced organiser information identifying PALS as established in 2005 and describing its history and regional events.
- Paintball Asia League Series event archive, PBLeagues.
- World Cup Asia: The Conclusion, Villain Paintball, 10 December 2007. Event and overall season champions.
- United Paintball Federation, PALS announcement, WARPIG PR Wire, 4 January 2006.
- Pal Series Thailand Leg, PBNation, contemporary event discussion and results, August 2006.
- Flying colours for first Asian paintball tournament, Debbie Chan, The Star, 14 December 2006, archived.
- World Cup Asia 2010 Results, Villain Paintball, 29 November 2010.
- PALS Philippines International Championship 2010: Results & Conclusion, Villain Paintball, 24 August 2010.
- The Birth of PALS and Paintball World Cup Asia: Historical Origins, Allan Phang, 9 August 2011, accompanying organiser information.
- Australia Super 7 Series is now a PALS feeder series, Villain Paintball, 4 May 2011.
- Singapore Paintball Series 2015 Leg 2 / Paintball Asia League Series Singapore 2015 Leg 2, PBLeagues, event information and results.
- Paintball Asia League Series Singapore 2016, PBLeagues, event information and results.
- PALS Thailand 2012 – The Experience, Coldfire Promotions, Social Paintball, 7 March 2012.
- PALS 2nd Leg / Malaysia Open 2012 / MPOC 3rd Leg Is Around the Corner, Mazzy Mao, Social Paintball, 7 May 2012.
- PALS Thailand 2013: Official homepage and results, archived organiser website.
- PALS 2nd Leg / Malaysian Open / MPOC 2013 – Leg 3, PBLeagues, event information and results.
- 2013 PALS/NAZA World Cup Asia Video, Results, and Photo Gallery, Israel L., Social Paintball, 25 November 2013.
- 2014 Season Rankings: Paintball Asia League Series, PBLeagues.
- International Thailand Paintball Championship 2007, Villain Paintball, 21 June 2007, including the reproduced relocation announcement.
- Independence Cup 2007: Second Leg of PALS, Villain Paintball, 5 August 2007.
- World Cup Asia 2008: The Local-International Success, Dave “Landshark” Norman, Paintball Sports, February 2009, pp. 42–46.
- PALS China Postponed, SEBURO, 27 January 2011.
- Paintball: Infernal Muncul Juara Baru WCA 2012, Suryati Mohd Nor, mStar, 11 November 2012.
- 2015 Season Rankings: Paintball Asia League Series, PBLeagues.
- Asia and Asia Pacific Cup 2016 – 1st Leg of PALS, PBLeagues.
- 2016 Season Rankings: Paintball Asia League Series, PBLeagues.
- 2017 Season Rankings: Paintball Asia League Series, PBLeagues.