The Final 2024
Champions of the World Cup Malmö 2024
Winners interview
Team
Crepp
& Co
Can you introduce yourself and your team?
Midnight: My name is Sébastien, I am 39 years old and I am an osteopath. I like sports, board games and competition in general
A_stherie: I am Billy, I am also 39 years old and I am a microbiologist, I like video games, photography and Street Art
Hiro: For my part, I am 35 years old and I work in Quality Assurance. Just like Billy, I like video games, I play a little guitar and I practice climbing regularly.
Midnight: Billy and I are married, we discovered PI by chance during a vacation in Montpellier in the South of France. Back home, we wanted to do the one in Lille but we needed a team…
A_stherie: I immediately thought that Sylvain’s qualities would make him a good teammate, so I suggested it to him
Hiro: For my part, I had already played PI in Lille once with friends, I really liked it so I accepted Billy’s suggestion.
Midnight: For the name, we took the name of the group of friends that Billy and I had when we were students. At first, we just wanted to get the best possible score in PI but as time went on, we got into the game…
How did you feel about participating in the Prison Island World Cup?
In the spring of 2023 when the first World Cup was announced, we were very excited by the idea, we were extremely enthusiastic and hoped to qualify for the world final. The physical and mental challenge that it represented really attracted us. This year, after our second place last year, the desire to perform took a little more place. We approached the competition differently, with more preparation, to aim for the title.
What did you like most about the Prison Island activity?
A_stherie: the diversity of qualities required: physical, agility, reflection, etc. But also the need for teamwork to succeed in the challenges.
Hiro: Scoring has always been an important aspect. At first we just wanted to improve our score. Today it is the competition against other teams that motivates us.
Midnight: Like Sylvain, I really like scoring, I have a huge competitive spirit. But it is essential for us to always preserve the human aspect of the PI: fun and meetings.
How did your team prepare for the Prison Island World Cup?
At the beginning of the year we simply continued to play by discovering as many different PIs as possible. Then, as the World Cup approached, we focused on mastering each room. We also came to train twice in Malmö.
Can you share a particularly difficult moment from the competition?
Hiro: I tore my abdominal muscle 15 days before the French Championships. Usually I do all the climbing, we had to change our plans for the French Championships to avoid making my injury worse. I was very afraid of not being able to participate, mentally it was complicated
A_stherie: during the final we had a lot of difficulty with the new version of the “Submarine” room, we only scored very few points. At the end of the 90 minutes of play I thought that this would prevent us from getting on the podium.
Hiro: I wasn’t as pessimistic as Billy but we had trouble scoring enough in “Penalty” and until our last try I was worried.
Midnight: I twisted my ankle on Friday night during the last training session, I was in a lot of pain during the evening and I was quite worried. And like Billy, I thought that “Submarine” had cost us the title.
Did your team have a specific strategy before the World Cup?
We took advantage of our experience from last year to avoid making the same mistakes. So we focused our preparation on what we had failed in Brussels.
How did you adapt your strategy during the competition?
When the time came, the changes in the gyms forced us to adapt and undermined most of our strategies. But the idea was to quickly make the “new” gyms. And we also had to deal with the presence of the competitors and the availability of the gyms.
What was your favorite moment during the Prison Island World Cup?
Hiro: The hugs with Anders and the staff (laughs).
Team: More seriously, we can’t pick out a particular moment. What makes this adventure extraordinary is every step. Whether it’s the trips from PI to PI to train, the meetings with local teams and staff, the excitement of the competition, the preparation of our outfits, the arrival of Ygg our mascot…
How did your team celebrate the victory?
That same evening with the party organized for the World Cup and by redoing the PI Malmö by mixing with the other teams. The next day we went to Halmstad to try to make the perfect score that had eluded us during the summer (unfortunately we never found the last escape tunnel buttons). It was during the party in Halmstad that we uncorked the bottle of Champagne of the trophy.
What advice would you give to future participants in the Prison Island World Cup?
Team: Have fun and play a lot.
About us
Prison Island
Prison Island is an indoor adventure destination for everyone from 9-99 years old. It’s all about teamwork and collaboration to solve tricky challenges in cells and to collect points. All while the clock is ticking. What once started in 2004 in Västerås, Sweden is now a fast-growing international franchise chain with more than 70 sites in 15 countries. We’re heading for the world.