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18,000+ Students Bring Their Custom-Built Robots and Team Spirit to the Largest Sport for the Mind™ Showdown, the 2015 FIRST® Championship

will.i.am, U.S. Chief Technology Officer Megan Smith, rock band Boys Like Girls, singer-songwriter Christina Grimmie, Government Officials, NASA Engineers, and Top Inventors On Hand to “Make it Loud” and Celebrate Student Achievements in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math During World’s-Largest Robotics Event in St. Louis

Championship Presenting Sponsor Qualcomm Incorporated, will.i.am, and Dean Kamen cheered on young innovators from 40 countries as their robots took to the playing fields at the annual robotics championship

ST. LOUIS — (BUSINESS WIRE) — April 26, 2015 — This week, more than 18,000 students from around the globe traveled to St. Louis, Mo., put their engineering skills to the test at the annual FIRST® (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) Championship, held at various venues throughout the city.

The four-day FIRST® Championship event came down to a heart-pounding conclusion in front of a roarin ...

The four-day FIRST® Championship event came down to a heart-pounding conclusion in front of a roaring crowd of more than 40,000 when four teams from League City, Texas, and Davis, Clovis, and Palmdale, California of the Newton Subdivision won the coveted FIRST® Robotics Competition (FRC®) Championship Winning Alliance. (Photo: Business Wire)

B-roll: https://www.hightail.com/download/bXBZUGhhU1BuSlRIRHRVag

The four-day event came down to a heart-pounding conclusion Saturday night in front of a roaring crowd of more than 40,000 when four teams from League City, Texas, and Davis, Clovis, and Palmdale, California of the Newton Subdivision won the coveted FIRST® Robotics Competition (FRC®) Championship Winning Alliance. In this year’s recycling-themed game, RECYCLE RUSHSM, FRC teams took to the field, where competing Alliances scored points by stacking totes on scoring platforms, capping those stacks with recycling containers, and properly disposing of pool noodles, representing litter. In keeping with the recycling theme of the game, all game pieces used are reusable or recyclable by teams in their home locations or by FIRST at the end of the season.

In all, over 18,000 students, ages 6 to 18, participated in the Championship events in St. Louis.

Selected Quotes:

Among the participants, many U.S. and international FIRST student robotics teams earned honors for design excellence, competitive play, research, business plans, website design, teamwork, and partnerships. A not-for-profit organization founded in 1989 by inventor Dean Kamen, FIRST inspires young people’s interest and participation in science and technology.

In St. Louis, more than 900 teams from 40 countries competed in the four FIRST programs: FIRST® LEGO® League (FLL®, grades 4 to 8, 9 to 14-year-olds in the U.S, Canada, and Mexico; 9 to 16-year-olds outside the U.S., Canada, and Mexico); FIRST® Tech Challenge (FTC®, grades 7 to 12, 12 to 18-year-olds); and FIRST® Robotics Competition (FRC®, grades 9 to 12, ages 14 to 18). In addition to the high-energy robotics matches, 60 teams of 6 to 9-year-olds participated in the Junior FIRST® LEGO® League (Jr.FLL®, grades K-3), World Festival Expo.

The Dr. Bart Kamen Memorial Scholarships were given to:

The FIRST Championship honored significant supporters of the FIRST mission:

2015 FIRST Championship Winners

The 2015 winners of the competitions are as follows:

From FIRST Robotics Competition:

From FIRST Tech Challenge:

1. FIRST® Robotics Competition (FRC®) Championship – FRC combines sports excitement with the rigors of science and technology. Under strict rules, limited resources, and time limits, teams are challenged to fundraise, design a brand, exercise teamwork, and build and program robots to perform tasks against competitors.

Other FRC Awards included:

Championship Finalists

Hopper Subdivision

2. FIRST® Tech Challenge (FTC®) World Championship – FTC students learn to think like engineers. Teams build robots from a reusable kit of parts, develop strategies, document their progress, and compete head to head. The object of this year’s game, named CASCADE EFFECTSM, is to score more points than an opponent by placing balls into rolling goals and then moving goals into scoring areas. Points can also be awarded when balls are shot into a center goal.

Approximately 44,500 students on 4,450+ FIRST Tech Challenge teams competed during the 2014/2015 FTC season. The 2014/15 FIRST Tech Challenge Sponsors include Official Program Sponsor for the FIRST Tech Challenge, Rockwell Collins, and FTC CAD and Collaboration Sponsor, PTC.

The FIRST Tech Challenge World Championship Inspire Award, recognizing excellence in robot design and teamwork, went to Team 3595, Schrödinger’s Hat, Fairbanks, Alaska. The Winning Alliance was Team 6433, Neutrinos, Lakeland, Fla.; Team 7245, RedNek Robotics, Sun River, Mont.; Team 2844, ValleyX Robotics, Chandler, Ariz., of the Franklin Division.

The FTC Volunteer of the Year Award winner was Dale Jordon of Oregon. The Compass Award for excellence in coaching/mentoring was awarded to Coach Warren Morris, Team 6510, CyberSharks, Palacios, Texas.

3. FIRST® LEGO® League (FLL®) World Festival – FLL introduces younger children to real-world engineering challenges by conducting research projects and building LEGO-based autonomous robots to complete tasks on a thematic playing surface. FLL teams, guided by their imaginations, discover exciting career possibilities and learn to make positive contributions to society. This year’s challenge, FLL WORLD CLASSSM, engaged 267,000+ kids on nearly 27,000 teams to redesign how we gather knowledge and skills in the 21st century.

Top honors went to Champion’s Award 1st Place winner, Team 23850, Fast & Curious, Aley, Lebanon; Champion’s Award Finalist, Team 23750, Mechatronic Ants, Pamplona, Spain; and Champion’s Award Finalist, Team 2936, HIPPIES (Humans in Peaceful Pursuit of Intellectual Engineering Skills), Peoria, Ill.

FIRST LEGO League Global Innovation Award Finalists

• Team 4678, Braille Boys & Annie, Cumming, Georgia, Insta-Braille

• Team 12758, LEGO Lions, Austin, Texas, Haptic AppPlatform for Visually Impaired

• Team 100, Team Storm, Terre Haute, Ind., ROY G. BIV Math System

4. Junior FIRST® LEGO® League (Jr.FLL®) World Festival Expo – Jr.FLL introduces children ages 6 to 9 to the exciting worlds of science and technology. Teams of up to six children and one adult Coach take on a real-world Challenge, to be explored through research, critical thinking, and imagination.

In this year’s Jr.FLL Challenge, Jr.FLL THINK TANKSM, teams took a closer look at where and how learning happens every day. Teams learn how science, technology, engineering, and math impact our everyday lives while they get excited about future innovations.

2015 FIRST Championship Sponsors

Qualcomm is the 2015 FIRST Championship Presenting Sponsor.

2015 FIRST Championship Program Sponsors include: Energizer Holdings, Inc.; FedEx Corporation; Center for Energy Workforce Development (CEWD); Google; Monsanto; NRG Energy; U.S. Air Force; United Technologies Corporation (UTC).

Other 2015 FIRST Championship Sponsors include: Abbott Fund; Bechtel Corporation; The Boeing Company; BOSCH; The Coca-Cola Company; Comcast NBCUniversal; The Dow Chemical Company; Dr. William H. Danforth; Edward Jones Foundation; I Am Jane; INCOSE; Microsoft Corporation; Mouser Electronics; Nidec Motor Corporation; NVIDIA; Rockwell Automation; Scottrade, Inc.; Southwest Airlines; SpaceX; St. Louis Regional Chamber; Trio Foundation of St. Louis; UL; Vulcan Spring & Manufacturing Co.; Wells Fargo Advisors.

Save the date! The  FIRST Championship will be held in:

St. Louis April 27-30, 2016 | Houston April 19-22, 2017 and St. Louis April 26-29, 2017 | Houston April 18-21, 2018 and Detroit April 25-28, 2018

Accomplished inventor Dean Kamen founded FIRST® (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) in 1989 to inspire an appreciation of science and technology in young people. Based in Manchester, N.H., FIRST designs accessible, innovative programs to build self-confidence, knowledge, and life skills while motivating young people to pursue opportunities in science, technology, and engineering. With support from over 200 of the Fortune 500 companies and more than $20 million in college scholarships, the not-for-profit organization hosts the FIRST® Robotics Competition (FRC®) for students in Grades 9-12; FIRST® Tech Challenge (FTC® ) for Grades 7-12; FIRST® LEGO® League (FLL® ) for Grades 4-8; and Junior FIRST® LEGO® League (Jr.FLL®) for Grades K-3. Gracious Professionalism® is a way of doing things that encourages high-quality work, emphasizes the value of others, and respects individuals and the community. To learn more about FIRST, go to www.usfirst.org.

FIRST and the FIRST logo are registered trademarks of the United States Foundation For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology (FIRST). LEGO® is a registered trademark of The LEGO Group.



Contact:

FIRST®
Haley Dunn, 603-206-2494
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or
Brooke Blew, 603-206-2048
Email Contact