Students from St. Brigid’s College in Loughrea have qualified for the F1 in Schools World Finals in Melbourne next year. Their team ‘Quintolux’ beat off stiff competition to be crowned National Champions in the national finals held earlier this year, as well as winning ‘Best Social Media’ in the competition.
F1 in Schools is the only global multi-disciplinary challenge in which teams of students aged 9 to 19 deploy CAD/CAM software to collaborate, design, analyse, manufacture, test, and then race miniature compressed air powered cars made from the F1 model block.
Quintolux consists of Team Manager Cian Breheny as well as Andrea Comar, Claire LaBranche, Robert McGonigle and Alana Whelan.
Team Manager Cian Breheny spoke about the benefit of the challenge.
“I am a different person now than I was before F1 in schools. Skills such as time management, IT work, public speaking and self-confidence are vital in this competition and F1 in schools teaches you how to grow and use these skills every day.”
Claire LaBranche, who is responsible for Research and Development said this competition has opened her eyes to a whole new world, that of both Motorsport and the career diversity in STEM.
"Along with that, I have also gained life skills such as public speaking, teamwork, thinking innovatively and collaboration"
Aaron Hannon, Co-Founder of F1 in Schools, has called on schools to enter this year’s programme.
“F1 in Schools is a fantastic opportunity for second-level students to learn how to be a leader, an engineer or a businessperson in a fast-paced, exciting and competitive way. Through participating in the challenge, the Quintolux team have earned a once-in-a-lifetime trip to represent Ireland at the F1 in Schools World Finals, where they will meet like-minded students from all around the globe. At F1 in Schools Ireland, we’re delighted to work with new schools and new teachers to help bring these opportunities to even more students. As such, we encourage all schools to contact us or visit f1inschools.ie to learn more about entering the 2020/21 F1 in Schools season.”
The F1 in Schools World Finals will take place in Melbourne in March 2021.
