Two Washington State FIRST teams are World Champions

KENT, Wash., April 25, 2018 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Attention sports teams and debate clubs, it is time to make room in the trophy case for robotics! Last week, 50 teams from across Washington competed at the FIRST World Championships in Houston. The four-day event, attended by 400 teams and 30,000 people, including 15,000 students ages 6 to18 from 43 countries, came to a heart-pounding conclusion Saturday night in front of thousands of cheering fans at Minute Maid Park when teams competed in match finals for the FIRST^® Robotics Competition and FIRST^® Tech Challenge world championships. Four high school teams from San Jose, California; Greenville, Texas; Sammamish, Washington; and Hod-Ha'Sharon, HaMerkaz, Israel, made up the FIRST Robotics Competition Winning Alliance for this year's game, FIRST POWER UP^SM. Teams from Sutherlin, Oregon; Sun River, Montana; and Bellevue, Washington, were the FIRST Tech Challenge RELIC RECOVERY^SM Winning Alliance.

Team 2976, the Spartabots from Skyline High School in Sammamish and Team 12611, TechNova, a community based-team from Renton made it to the world stage to become World Champions. Both teams had tremendous STEM and teamwork performances. In addition to these teams, many other FIRST Washington teams including the two FIRST LEGO League teams, walked away with awards recognizing their hard work in the sport of science, technology and teamwork.  

Jasmine, president of the Spartabots said after winning, "We have poured thousands of hours into striving to do our best, and I couldn't be more proud of each person on this team. The dedication and drive of my teammates is truly awe-inspiring. We've learned how to problem solve under pressure and have grown into stronger engineers and leaders. For me, every second I have spent in our build room, on a practice field and at competition was well worth it, not because of the win but because of the priceless experience, immense knowledge and lifelong connections I've gained. Thank you to all the mentors, parents, sponsors, FIRST Washington and FIRST who make this possible." 

"This is a sport where every kid can go pro. There is a job out there for each of these students, and Washington employers are excited about the skill set that these kids are learning," says Erin McCallum, president of FIRST Washington.

As one student from the TechNova commented, "Today, I have realized that it isn't all about winning. I feel as if FIRST is a part of me and I want to inspire as many people as possible to get involved because this program is truly amazing and something that all students should experience." 

To learn more please visit www.firstwa.org. Team summary of Awards:

FIRST LEGO League, 4^th-8^th grade: 
https://app.smartsheet.com/b/publish?EQBCT=8859aeebd7b34bf5aacf7927c6f5f5e0

FIRST Tech Challenge, 7^th-12^th grade:
https://app.smartsheet.com/b/publish?EQBCT=83faa599d82446778b96636bd171fb5c

FIRST Robotics Competition, 9^th-12^th grade: 
https://app.smartsheet.com/b/publish?EQBCT=32f4a2ce2d66455cb0e08e2a098963da

Contact:
Peggy Gray, FIRST Washington
[email protected]
206-276-4436

SOURCE FIRST Washington