Ireland triumph at F1 in Schools World Championship

Newly crowned Irish World Champions Koni Kats received a hero’s welcome upon their return to Dublin from the fifth Formula One in Schools Technology Challenge World Championships in London where they beat 31 international teams vying for the Champions’ title.

Crowds met the World Champs at Dublin Airport and the Team’s school, St. David’s Secondary School in Greystones, County Wicklow, held a special ceremony this week to celebrate the victors’ return from the international event where they were presented with the Bernie Ecclestone World Championship Trophy by current F1 champion Lewis Hamilton. The team also received the coveted Automotive and Motorsport Engineering scholarships to City University London and an exclusive tour of the McLaren Technology Centre.

The Formula One in Schools competition, which is run in Ireland by the Irish Computer Society in partnership with Discover Science and Engineering, is the largest global educational initiative. The innovative competition challenges students from more than 30 countries to draw upon their entrepreneurialism, combining technology, engineering, marketing, sales as well as communication skills to compete at regional, national and international levels. At the core of the competition, students use CAD/CAM software to design, build and test a model compressed-air-powered balsa wood F1 car of the future.

Thirty-one teams from 20 countries vied for the top spot but the Koni Kats beat their international rivals with their design, development, engineering, teamwork and presentation skills. The team also captured two other awards en route to their championship title: Best Verbal Presentation and Best Engineered Car. The Koni Kats team comprising Eoin O'Connell, Conor Daly, Sean Cleary and Adam Gammell were thrilled to take victory.

Eoin O’Connell, Team Manager for the Koni Kats, said of their victory, 'We’re over the moon. We’ve been working for two years on this, so we are thrilled to have all our efforts recognised with this achievement. It’s very special to have won this, we just can’t believe it. I think the work we put into our design and our attention to detail in this, looking at every element from the front wing to the rear fins, has brought us this victory, as well as our strong teamwork.'

The Minister for Education and Science, Batt O’Keeffe TD, paid warm tribute to the Irish winners and to the competition. 'I want to offer my sincere congratulations to Conor, Eoin, Seán and Adam for their outstanding achievement. It’s a proud day for them, their families, teachers and, indeed, the country,' said Minister O’Keefe. 'Team Koni Kats' success shows that our young people are bright and capable ambassadors of scientific and entrepreneurial endeavour. The F1 in Schools Challenge encourages the uptake of programmes in science, technology and engineering that will drive growth in these key sectors of the knowledge economy.' 

Jim Friars, CEO of the Irish Computer Society said: 'The Irish Computer Society would like to congratulate Koni Kats on their superb triumph. Their victory is well deserved as they have worked hard over the last two years to reach this goal. The success of the Koni Kats underlines the importance of investing in education, science and technology to produce innovation and growth in the key sectors of the Knowledge Economy.' 

During the World Championships, Lewis Hamilton presented Koni Kats with the Best Engineered Car award, which was supported by his F1 team. Hamilton praised the Irish team for their high level of engineering, which has set new standards for the F1 in Schools Challenge.

Hamilton said of his visit to the F1 in Schools World Championships, 'I’ve really enjoyed meeting the students and finding out more about this exciting global initiative. The global popularity and high tech world of Formula One provides a very exciting and engaging platform for education and it is great to see it being used within schools to enthuse students to study engineering, as well as the other key school subjects. I hope F1 in Schools encourages a new generation of students into Formula One and helps to continue to develop the sport as one of the most technologically advanced in the world.'

Teams wishing to experience the thrills of the competition can now register for the 2009/2010 F1 in Schools™ race season at www.F1inSchools.ie.

The F1 in Schools Technology Challenge is organised by the Irish Computer Society in partnership with Discover Science and Engineering.