F1 success for St Colman’s
Students from St Colman’s College in Fermoy were celebrating on Friday last as Adventum Racing were crowned ‘Medtronic National champions’ at the finals of this year’s F1 in Schools Ireland competition.
The team fought off intense competition from over 60 other teams representing secondary schools around the country during the day-long event in Salthill, Galway. The podium was completed by Catalyst Racing and Kronos Racing from Marist College Athlone and Gonzaga College, Dublin respectively.
Students from St Colman’s College in Fermoy were celebrating on Friday last as Adventum Racing were crowned ‘Medtronic National champions’ at the finals of this year’s ‘F1 in Schools’ Ireland competition.
The team fought off intense competition from over 60 other teams representing secondary schools around the country during the day-long event in Salthill, Galway. The podium was completed by Catalyst Racing and Kronos Racing from Marist College Athlone and Gonzaga College, Dublin respectively.
‘F1 in Schools’ is a global STEM competition that challenges students to design, build and race their very own miniature Formula One Car. The competition, now in its 16th year in Ireland, encourages students to consider careers in STEM, and focuses on magnifying the appeal of roles in STEM fields using the magnetic appeal of Formula One. Teaching skills such as computer-aided design and 3D printing, the competition enrolled over 700 students for the 2021/22 season.
LOOKING AHEAD
Commenting on Adventum Racing’s win, team manager Fionn O’Connell expressed the team’s delight.
“We are absolutely delighted to be named national champions. We learned so much as a team over the past 9 months of working together, and now we can’t wait to represent Ireland at the World finals!”
The success continued for the Fermoy students with Fionn O’Connell being awarded runner-up in the Meta Engineer of the Future Award, which was won by Donal McDermott from Marist College Athlone. The award is designed to highlight the technical work and achievements of a student during the competition. Fionn was honoured by this award.
“This competition has truly given me an experience to remember. It has grown my passion for engineering and I have learned many skills that will help in the future. I am so proud of all the work the lads have put in which has resulted in this monumental achievement,” Fionn said.
TEAM WORK
Each student on the Adventum team was assigned a specific role. The STEM-loving students students had to design their car, generate a following on social media and market their team, as well as source sponsors. The team comprised of Fionn O’Connell (team manager and design engineer), Marc Callanan (technical engineer), Jamie Dineen (manufacturing engineer), Darragh Casey (resource manager and graphic designer), Quentin Joyce (sponsorship relations manager), Colm Clancy (social media manager) and Pearce Wyley (affiliate member).
A spokesperson for St Colman’s explained the dedication of the students throughout the process.
“Fionn, Jamie and Marc worked on the car using a rigorous development process. They tested the car in virtual wind tunnels, simulated the forces that would be acting on it throughout the race, as well as ensuring it was in line with all the technical regulations. This hard work paid off as they also won the Best Engineering Award which recognised innovative solutions and designs when it came to creating the car”.
Student Darragh Casey outlined what this experience meant to him.
“Personally, the ‘F1 in Schools’ competition has allowed me to develop as a person. The competition has enabled me to develop many new skills, such as graphic design, project management and time management skills. The competition has also opened my eyes to many new career paths, and I would encourage any student or school to take part in the competition as there are aspects for everyone to enjoy.”
SECOND FASTEST CAR AT FINALS DAY
On hand to award the CJJ Motorsports Cup to the winners, along with prize money amounting to €3,000, was Damien Joyce, Engineering Director at Medtronic, title sponsors of ‘F1 in Schools’ Ireland.
“Congratulations to the national champions, Adventum Racing and all other teams involved. Medtronic is delighted to partner with ‘F1 in Schools’ again this year. We value the focus that ‘F1 in Schools’ places on key competencies like design, manufacturing, strategy and critical thinking, while honing IT, communication and finance skills,” he said.
On the finals day, St. Colman’s College had the second fastest car, which also proved to be the 3rd fastest car in Irish history! The victorious Fermoy students will now progress to represent Ireland at the 2022 ‘F1 in Schools’ World Finals later this year.
As the St. Colman’s College team bask in their success this week before facing into their summer tests, they would like to thank everyone who has supported them throughout this competition thus far. Namely, their parents, teachers, MTU for allowing the use of their facilities for track testing and especially their sponsors, Clarke Analytics, Lisnabrin Engineering, Fermoy Print and Design, Spar and BOF Sports.
F1 IN SCHOOLS 2022/23
‘F1 in Schools’ will begin enrolling students for the 2022/23 season later this year and schools are being encouraged to enter. Registration will launch in September 2022. For more information visit f1inschools.ie or e-mail info@f1inschools. ie