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Irish World Champions Crowned in London

Team Koni Kats claim international title

The Irish Computer Society and its training and certification body, ICS Skills, are very proud to announce that the Irish team Koni Kats from St. David's Secondary School in Greystones, County Wicklow have won the fifth Formula One in Schools Technology Challenge World Championships. The Irish Computer Society has been running the competition since 2006.

Check out the video and our picture gallery.

At a glittering awards ceremony in London attended by Lewis Hamilton and VIP guests from the world of Formula One and education, the talented students were presented with the Bernie Ecclestone World Championship Trophy and coveted Automotive and Motorsport Engineering scholarships to City University London. They were also be given an exclusive tour of the McLaren Technology Centre.

Thirty one teams from 20 countries vied for the Champions title. The Koni Kats team with their design, development, engineering and presentation skills, as well as excellent team work, beat their international rivals and took home the Bernie Ecclestone trophy. The team also captured two other awards en route to their championship title: Best Presentation and Best Engineered Car. The Koni Kats team comprising Conor Daly, Eoin O'Connell, 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."

Current F1 champion, Lewis Hamilton presented Koni Kats with the Best Engineered Car award, which was supported by his F1 team, Vodafone McLaren Mercedes. 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."

Jim Friars, CEO of the Irish Computer Society commented:

"The Irish Computer Society would like to congratulate Koni Kats on their success and on bringing the trophy home! It is a superb achievement and well deserved as the Koni Kats have worked hard over the last two years to reach this goal."

This unique student challenge is the largest global educational initiative. The students use CAD/CAM software to design, build and test a model compressed air-powered balsa wood F1 car of the future and it takes place in over 30 countries around the world, with an estimated 14 million school children aware of this engineering challenge.

 

 

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