More than 15,000 Students from 40 Countries Competed with Team-Built Robots and Showcased Innovation Skills with Support from Presenting Sponsor Qualcomm and Other Global Brands

Two-Part Event Celebrates Conclusion of Space-Themed Robotics Season, Kicks Off 2020 Season FIRST® RISE^SM Powered by Star Wars: Force for Change

HOUSTON — (BUSINESS WIRE) — April 20, 2019 — This week, more than 15,000 students from around the world traveled to Houston, putting their innovation skills to the test at the annual FIRST Championship Presented by Qualcomm Incorporated, held at the George R. Brown Convention Center, Minute Maid Park and Discovery Green.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20190420005006/en/

The four-day Houston event, attended by more than 33,000 people came down 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 teams from California – Atascadero, Madera, Burlingame, and El Segundo – were the FIRST Robotics Competition Winning Alliance for this year’s game, DESTINATION: DEEP SPACE Presented by The Boeing Company. Teams from Palm Harbor, Fla.; Elon, N.C.; and Leawood, Kan., were the FIRST Tech Challenge Winning Alliance for ROVER RUCKUS Presented by Qualcomm.

Over 15,000 students, ages 6-18, participated in FIRST Championship Houston. FIRST Championship, the world’s largest celebration of science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) for students, will continue next week with 15,000 more students in Detroit (April 24-27).

Selected Quotes:

• Dean Kamen, founder of FIRST, said, “We can't build the future for our children. We must build our children for the future.”
• Don Bossi, president of FIRST, addressed FIRST supporters: “Throughout each of our four programs, FIRST teams get hands-on experience with modern engineering equipment and technologies, but they also take on public speaking, leadership, problem-solving and collaboration challenges that build core skills and confidence. Thanks to all of you, FIRST is providing a transformative experience for our young people across all population groups.”
• Jim Bridenstine, administrator of NASA, addressed students Saturday night: “30 years of FIRST robotics, it gets more impressive every year… In November, I had the opportunity to go out to NASA Jet Propulsion Center in California… Many were graduates of the FIRST robotics program. They were alumni. Think about this: 10 years ago, they were in your seat. Ten years from now, where will you be? What will you discover?”

Among the participants, many earned honors for design excellence, competitive play, research, business plans, website design, and teamwork. A not-for-profit organization founded in 1989 by inventor Dean Kamen, FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) inspires innovation and leadership in young people through engaging, team-based robotics challenges.

In Houston, more than 700 robotics teams from 40 countries competed and exhibited in the four FIRST programs, including FIRST® LEGO® League (ages 9 to 16, varies by country); FIRST Tech Challenge (ages 12 to 18); and FIRST Robotics Competition (ages 14 to 18). In addition to the high-energy robotics matches, 60 teams participated in the FIRST® LEGO® League Jr. (grades K-4, ages 6 to 9) World Festival Expo.

FIRST Championship Houston honored significant supporters of the FIRST mission:

• The Volunteer of the Year Award was awarded to event volunteers for each of the four FIRST programs: Terrell Burch from Camden, S.C. (FIRST Robotics Competition); Jill Wilker from Fremont, Calif. (FIRST Tech Challenge); David Stolz from Houston (FIRST LEGO League); and Stacey Jones from Palm City, Fla. (FIRST LEGO League Jr.)
• The Compass Award for excellence in coaching/mentoring FIRST Tech Challenge was awarded to Paul Stewart. He was nominated for this award by Team 8651, Wait For It…, from Pearl, Miss.
• Coach/Mentor Awards for FIRST LEGO League went to Steven Clark from Hoschton, Ga.; Charbel AINajjar from Dubai, United Arab Emirates; Lori Farris from Shawnee, Okla.; and Enoch Jocob from Abuja, Nigeria.

At Minute Maid Park, FIRST, unveiled FIRST® RISE^SM, a unified season theme for all four FIRST programs that is powered by Star Wars: Force for Change, a philanthropic initiative from Lucasfilm and parent company Disney. This 2019-2020 season, themed around building sustainable cities for our future, is setting out to inspire citizens of the galaxy to work together, strengthening and protecting the Force that binds us and creating a place where collaboration and collective wisdom can elevate new ideas and foster growth. The reveal video was narrated by Mark Hamill.

2019 FIRST Championship Winners

The 2019 winners of the competitions and awards announced in Houston are as follows:

Dean’s List Award – This award celebrates outstanding student leaders whose passion for and effectiveness at attaining FIRST ideals is exemplary.

From FIRST Robotics Competition:

• Nicola Pang, Team 6579, Komplete Kaos Inc., Helensburgh, New South Wales, Australia
• Jacob Rodriguez, Team 4322, Clockwork Oranges, Orange, Calif.
• Chibale Anwisye, Team 931, Perpetual Chaos, St. Louis, Mo.
• Divya Satrawada, Team 115, MVRT, Cupertino, Calif.
• Lauren Vitellaro, Team 3574, High Tekerz, Seattle, Wash.

From FIRST Tech Challenge:

• Emily Miner, Team 11256, Nano Nerds, Folsom, Calif.
• Andy Li, Team 9829, MAKbots, San Antonio, Texas
• Rispa Vranka Wafula, Team 7776, Loose Screws, Portland, Ore.
• James Cassady, Team 9879, Root Negative One, Springdale, Ark.
• Nanami Duncan, Team 5687, Cyber Mafia, Carson City, Nev.
• Cole Nagata, Team 7548, SPAREPARTS, Honolulu, Hawaii
• Raul Rodriguez, Team 13536, Raspado Robotics, Salt Lake City, Utah
• Blake Sanders, Team 10497, SwampBots, Gainesville, Fla.

1. FIRST® Robotics Competition Championship – FIRST Robotics Competition 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 compete in an exciting game that includes autonomous and driver-operated periods. In the 2019 challenge, DESTINATION: DEEP SPACE Presented by The Boeing Company, two competing alliances collect samples on planet Primus. With only two-and-a-half minutes until liftoff, the alliances must gather as much cargo as possible and prepare their spaceships for liftoff before the next sandstorm arrives.

More than 94,000 students on 3,800 teams competed during the 2019 season.

• Team 1902, Exploding Bacon, Orlando, Fla., won the Chairman’s Award, the highest honor given at the FIRST Robotics Competition Championship, recognizing the team that best represents a model for other teams to emulate and best embodies the purpose and goals of FIRST. Team 2682, Boneyard Robotics, Winterville, N.C., and Team 3646, INTEGRA BAHCESEHIR, Istanbul, Turkey, were Chairman’s Award Finalists.
• The Winning Alliance of the FIRST Robotics Competition was Team 973, Greybots, Atascadero, Calif.; Team 1323, MadTown Robotics, Madera, Calif.; Team 5026, Iron Panthers, Burlingame, Calif.; and Team 4201, The Vitruvian Bots, El Segundo, Calif.

Other FIRST Robotics Competition Awards included:

Championship Finalists –

Turing Subdivision

• Team 254, The Cheesy Poofs, San Jose, Calif.
• Team 3310, Black Hawk Robotics, Heath, Texas
• Team 6986, PPT bots, Nanjing, China
• Team 948, NRG (Newport Robotics Group), Bellevue, Wash.

Subdivision Winners –

Carver Subdivision

• Team 1678, Citrus Circuits, Davis, Calif.
• Team 7179, Crossfire, Garland, Texas
• Team 3132, Thunder Down Under, Sydney, Australia
• Team 1939, THE KUHNIGITS, Kansas City, Mo.

Galileo Subdivision

• Team 971, Spartan Robotics, Mountain View, Calif.
• Team 179, Children of the Swamp, Riviera Beach, Fla.
• Team 3646, INTEGRA BAHCESEHIR, Istanbul, Turkey
• Team 498, The Cobra Commanders, Glendale, Ariz.

Hopper Subdivision

• Team 2122, Team Tators, Boise, Idaho
• Team 2046, Bear Metal, Maple Valley, Wash.
• Team 6485, Matheson's Mecha Mustangs, Surrey, B.C., Canada
• Team 4192, Jaguar Robotics, Flower Mound, Texas

Newton Subdivision

• Team 973, Greybots, Atascadero, Calif.
• Team 1323, MadTown Robotics, Madera, Calif.
• Team 5026, Iron Panthers, Burlingame, Calif.
• Team 4201, The Vitruvian Bots, El Segundo, Calif.

Roebling Subdivision

• Team 148, Robowranglers, Greenville, Texas
• Team 3847, Spectrum -△◅, Houston, Texas
• Team 6829, Ignite Robotics, Suwanee, Ga.
• Team 2907, Lion Robotics, Auburn, Wash.

Turing Subdivision

• Team 254, The Cheesy Poofs, San Jose, Calif.
• Team 3310, Black Hawk Robotics, Heath, Texas
• Team 6986, PPT bots, Nanjing, China
• Team 948, NRG (Newport Robotics Group), Bellevue, Wash.

Subdivision Finalists –

Carver Subdivision

• Team 6443, AEMBOT, Hillsboro, Ore.
• Team 1746, OTTO, Cumming, Ga.
• Team 7426, PAIR OF DICE ROBOTICS, Las Vegas, Nev.
• Team 2811, StormBots, Vancouver, Wash.

Galileo Subdivision

• Team 4587, Jersey Voltage, Houston, Texas
• Team 2468, Team Appreciate, Austin, Texas
• Team 5414, Pearadox, Pearland, Texas
• Team 4565, Skyline Robotics, Mesa, Ariz.

Hopper Subdivision

• Team 4087, Falcon Robotics, New Orleans, La.
• Team 4043, NerdHerd, McMinnville, Ore.
• Team 2976, Spartabots, Sammamish, Wash.
• Team 2992, The S.S. Prometheus, Mandeville, La.

Newton Subdivision

• Team 5015, SWAT Bots Robotics, Airdrie, Alta., Canada
• Team 1983, Skunk Works Robotics, Seattle, Wash.
• Team 3674, CloverBots, Battle Ground, Wash.
• Team 233, The Pink Team, Rockledge, Fla.

Roebling Subdivision

• Team 5411, PowerEagle, Prosper, Texas
• Team 1658, Tech Heads, St. Louis, Mo.
• Team 3737, Roto-Raptors, Goldsboro, N.C.
• Team 2485, W.A.R. Lords, San Diego, Calif.

Turing Subdivision

• Team 2403, Plasma Robotics, Mesa, Ariz.
• Team 2733, Pigmice, Portland, Ore.
• Team 5930, Lunar Kitties, Newcastle, Okla.
• Team 1726, N.E.R.D.S. (Nifty Engineering Robotics Design Squad), Sierra Vista, Ariz.

Engineering Inspiration Award –

• Carver-Newton Division: Team 2905, Sultans of Turkiye, Istanbul, Turkey
• Galileo-Roebling Division: Team 2557, SOTAbots, Tacoma, Wash.
• Hopper-Turing Division: Team 3284, Camdenton LASER, Camdenton, Mo.

Autonomous Award sponsored by Ford –

• Carver-Newton Division: Team 624, CRyptonite, Katy, Texas
• Galileo-Roebling Division: Team 1658, Tech Heads, St. Louis, Mo.
• Hopper-Turing Division: Team 1425, Error Code Xero, Wilsonville, Ore.

Creativity Award sponsored by Xerox –

• Carver-Newton Division: Team 6443, AEMBOT, Hillsboro, Ore.
• Galileo-Roebling Division: Team 1318, Issaquah Robotics Society, Issaquah, Wash.
• Hopper-Turing Division: Team 5013, Trobots, Kansas City, Mo.

Entrepreneurship Award sponsored by Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers –

• Carver-Newton Division: Team 1678, Citrus Circuits, Davis, Calif.
• Galileo-Roebling Division: Team 3737, Roto-Raptors, Goldsboro, N.C.
• Hopper-Turing Division: Team 1683, Techno Titans, Johns Creek, Ga.

Excellence in Engineering Award sponsored by Delphi –

• Carver-Newton Division: Team 846, The Funky Monkeys, San Jose, Calif.
• Galileo-Roebling Division: Team 971, Spartan Robotics, Mountain View, Calif.
• Hopper-Turing Division: Team 6986, PPT bots, Nanjing, China

Gracious Professionalism® Award sponsored by Johnson & Johnson –

• Carver-Newton Division: Team 2073, EagleForce, Elk Grove, Calif.
• Galileo-Roebling Division: Team 6800, ViperBots Valor, Austin, Texas
• Hopper-Turing Division: Team 6814, Ellipse, Santa Rosa, Calif.

Imagery Award in honor of Jack Kamen –

• Carver-Newton Division: Team 4635, PrepaTec - Botbusters, Monterrey, Mexico
• Galileo-Roebling Division: Team 4965, FIRE, Anderson, S.C.
• Hopper-Turing Division: Team 1622, Team Spyder, Poway, Calif.

Industrial Design Award sponsored by General Motors –

• Carver-Newton Division: Team 1323, MadTown Robotics, Madera, Calif.
• Galileo-Roebling Division: Team 4488, Shockwave, Hillsboro, Ore.
• Hopper-Turing Division: Team 254, The Cheesy Poofs, San Jose, Calif.

Safety Award sponsored by UL –

• Carver-Newton Division: Team 932, The Circuit Chargers, Tulsa, Okla.
• Galileo-Roebling Division: Team 3250, Kennedy Robotics, Sacramento, Calif.
• Hopper-Turing Division: Team 3284, Camdenton LASER, Camdenton, Mo.

Innovation in Control Award sponsored by Rockwell Automation –

• Carver-Newton Division: Team 368, Team Kika Mana, Honolulu, Hawaii
• Galileo-Roebling Division: Team 4469, R.A.I.D. (Raider Artificial Intelligence DIvision), Federal Way, Wash.
• Hopper-Turing Division: Team 744, Shark Attack, Fort Lauderdale, Fla.

Quality Award sponsored by Motorola –

• Carver-Newton Division: Team 2910, Jack in the Bot, Mill Creek, Wash.
• Galileo-Roebling Division: Team 148, Robowranglers, Greenville, Texas
• Hopper-Turing Division: Team 3476, Code Orange, Irvine, Calif.

Team Spirit Award sponsored by FCA Foundation –

• Carver-Newton Division: Team 386, Team Voltage, Melbourne, Fla.
• Galileo-Roebling Division: Team 568, Nerds of the North, Anchorage, Alaska
• Hopper-Turing Division: Team 3478, PrepaTec - LamBot, San Luis Potosí, Mexico

Highest Rookie Seed –

• Carver-Newton Division: Team 7887, Final FRONTIER, Camarillo, Calif.
• Galileo-Roebling Division: Team 7498, Wingus & Dingus, Auckland, New Zealand
• Hopper-Turing Division: Team 7840, EMONER, Istanbul, Turkey

Rookie All-star Award –

• Carver-Newton Division: Team 7567, SESI SENAI SÃO PAULO OCTOPUS, Bauru, Mexico
• Galileo-Roebling Division: Team 7565, SESI SENAI SÃO PAULO ROBONÁTICOS, São Paulo, Brazil
• Hopper-Turing Division: Team 7451, Avenger Robotics, Cumming, Ga.

Rookie Inspiration Award –

• Carver-Newton Division: Team 7653, Minebots, Santiago Papasquiaro, Mexico
• Galileo-Roebling Division: Team 7465, MAGNETECH, Atakum, Turkey
• Hopper-Turing Division: Team 7724, Molokai Robotics, Hoolehua, Hawaii

Judges’ Awards –

• Carver-Newton Division: Team 2486, CocoNuts, Flagstaff, Ariz.
• Galileo-Roebling Division: Team 7403, Lightning Blue Lizards, Envigado, Colombia
• Hopper-Turing Division: Team 6831, A-05 Annex, Hood River, Ore.

2. FIRST® Tech Challenge World Championship – FIRST Tech Challenge 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. In the 2018-19 game, ROVER RUCKUS Presented by Qualcomm, robots descend from the lander, collect and sort minerals into cargo holds, and perform autonomous tasks to compete on the field during two-and-a-half-minutes of gameplay.

More than 70,000 students on 7,000 FIRST Tech Challenge teams competed during the 2018-2019 season. FIRST Tech Challenge sponsors include Season Presenting Sponsor Qualcomm, Official Program Sponsor Rockwell Collins, and IoT, CAD and Collaboration Sponsor PTC.

• The FIRST Tech Challenge World Championship Inspire Award, recognizing excellence in robot design and teamwork, went to Team 9879, Root Negative One, Springdale, Ark.
• The Winning Alliance was Team 3101, Boom Bots, Palm Harbor, Fla.; Team 5064, Aperture Science, Elon, N.C.; and Team 6547, Cobalt Colts, Leawood, Kan.

Other FIRST Tech Challenge awards included:

• Division Winners –
  • Franklin Division: Team 3101, Boom Bots, Palm Harbor, Fla.; Team 5064, Aperture Science, Elon, N.C.; and Team 6547, Cobalt Colts, Leawood, Kan.
  • Jemison Division: Team 9829, MAKbots, San Antonio, Texas; Team 724, RedNek Robotics Wun, Sun River, Mont.; and Team 11260, Up-A-Creek Robotics, Longmont, Colo.
• Division Finalists –
  • Franklin Division: Team 12599, Overcharged, Portland, Ore.; Team 7105, SWIFT Intergalactic Space Llamas, Vass, N.C.; and Team 7172, Technical Difficulties, Plano, Texas
  • Jemison Division: Team 6929, Data Force, Highlands Ranch, Colo.; Team 7161, ViperBots Hydra, Austin, Texas; and Team 11089, Bytes of Kitkats, Portland, Ore.
• Collins Aerospace Innovate Award – Team 7357, Team Titanium Tech, Lees Summit, Mo.
• Design Award – Team 6929, Data Force, Highlands Ranch, Colo.
• Motivate Award – Team 3526, Marlbots, Los Angeles, Calif.
• Connect Award – Team 8651, Wait For It..., Pearl, Miss.
• Think Award – Team 2856, Tesseract, Seattle, Wash.
• Control Award – Team 8404, Quixilver, San Jose, Calif.
• Promote Award – Team 12599, Overcharged, Portland, Ore.
• Judges’ Award – Big Data Share Award – Team 11104, Bearded Pineapples, Kirkland, Wash.
• Judges’ Award – Rising Star Award – Team 15935, DONKPINK, Ciudad de Mexico, Mexico.
• Judges’ Award – All Systems Pro Award – Team 16088, MechDancer, Beijing, China.
• Judges’ Award – The Magic of Art in Technology Award – Team 16089, Void Ponderer, Beijing, China.

3. FIRST® LEGO® League World Festival – FIRST LEGO League introduces younger students to real-world engineering challenges by inviting them to conduct research projects and build LEGO-based autonomous robots to complete tasks on a thematic playing surface. FIRST LEGO League teams, guided by their imaginations, discover exciting career possibilities and learn to make positive contributions to society. This year’s challenge, INTO ORBIT, tasked more than 323,000 students on 40,000 teams representing 95+ countries with exploring how to solve the physical and social problems associated with long-duration space flight, and propose solutions for any issues they identify.

Top honors went to Champion’s Award winner, Team 44264, IDB TECH-NO-LOGIC, of Verona, Italy; Champion’s Award Finalist, Team 14938, Club Oreo, of Austin, Texas; and Champion’s Award Finalist, Team 44195, DYCI Blue Ocean’s 10, of Quezon City, Philippines.

Other FIRST^® LEGO^® League awards included:

• Robot Performance Award – Team 44178, HUNTSMAN, Georgetown, Malaysia.
• Mechanical Design Award – Team 44293, SESI RED RABBIT, Americana, Brazil.
• Programming Award – Team 44167, F6, Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
• Strategy & Innovation Award – Team 44306, BotBrothers, Hockenheim, France.
• Research Award – Team 44299, The Inventors, Voula, Greece.
• Innovative Solution Award – Team 25825, No Wais Time, Honolulu, Hawaii.
• Presentation Award – Team 44285, Forth Vortex, Tyr, Lebanon.
• Inspiration Award – Team 44067, PRIME ROBOTICS, Horishni Plavni, Ukraine.
• Teamwork Award – Team 33968, Forces of the Galaxy, Vancouver, B.C.
• Gracious Professionalism^® Award – Team 44319, SESI – SC TechMaker, Blumenau, Brazil.
• Judges’ Awards
  • Team 44140, Mig_Botics, Migues, Uruguay.
  • Team 44184, ACTON SPACE TROOPERS, Tegucigalpa, Honduras.
  • Team 44253, Al Madinah Robotics, Al Madinah, Saudi Arabia.
  • Team 44286, 3geared, Zagreb, Croatia.
  • Team 44300, NGK (Next Generation Kids), Kalivia, Athens, Greece.
  • Team 29642, The Dark Stars, Bloomfield, N.M.

4. FIRST® LEGO® League Jr. World Festival Expo – FIRST LEGO League Jr. introduces children ages 6 to 9 to the exciting world of science and technology. Teams of up to six children and two adult Coaches take on a real-world Challenge, to be explored through research, critical thinking, and imagination. In this year’s Challenge, MISSION MOON, students learn about the Earth’s moon and what is needed to live there.

FIRST^® LEGO^® League Jr. awards went to:

• Team Choice Award – Team 12, Moon Explorer, Beijing.
• Discover and Show Award – Team 45, Unicorn Majesties of the Galaxy 1, St. Louis; and Team 5, Unicorn Girls, St. Louis.
• Creative Show Award – Team 53, Master Builders, Las Vegas; and Team 51, Moon Al Hadi, Beirut, Lebanon.
• Design and Show Awards – Team 40, Astro-Robo-Qem, Baalbek, Lebanon; and Team 21, Castronauts, Santa Clara, Calif.
• Cooperative Poster Award – Team 47, Space Explorer, Da Nang, Vietnam.
• Innovative Explorers Award – Team 50, Weibel Starfleet, Fremont, Calif.; Team 9, Camdenton FIRST FLL Jr. LASER Osage Beach Elementary #5, Camdenton, Mo.; Team 44, Astrobots, Alvarado, Mexico; Team 8, Little Astronaut, Zgharta, Lebanon; and Team 10, Engi-Gears, of Austin, Texas.
• Explore and Discover Award – Team 48 APOLLO 11.2, Sugar Land, Texas; Team 15, The Awesome Panthers, Austin, Texas; Team 59, Pythagoras Academy, Richmond, B.C., Canada; and Team 56, Cyclone, Quezon City, Philippines.
• Creative Explorers Award – Team 60 Carolina Cosmos, Raleigh, N.C.
• Explore and Design Award – Team 1 Lunar Cats, Defuniak Springs, Fla.; Team 49, The Lunar Superstars, of Aiea, Hawaii; Team 57, The Lunacorns, Houston; Team 32, Moon Explorers, Kyiv, Ukraine; and Team 54, Mini Electrons, Oklahoma City.
• Cooperative Explorers Award – Team 28, Techno Future, Alexandria, Egypt; and Team 34, Mischief Managed, Noble, Okla.
• Innovative Model Awards – Team 29 Techno-Bots, Shawnee, Okla.; Team 46, Asteroid Jumpers (Gemini LEGO Jrs. 1), Melbourne Beach, Fla.; Team 18, Robotic RECK Rovers, Campbell, Calif.; and Team 26, Virus Jr., Tallinn, Estonia.
• Building and Discovery Award – Team 25, Apollo 6.0, of Overland Park, Kan.; Team 33, Go Rockets, Denham Springs, La.; and Team 24, Astro Pharaohs, of Tanta, Egypt.
• Creative Model Award – Team 13, I.C.E. Chips (Blue), Marrero,.; Team 41, Flying Ninjas, Bush, La.; Team 17, Lil ROBO-RANGERS “Challengers,” of Alton, Texas; Team 22, Builder Beavers, San Diego; Team 14, Junior TAZ BOTS – ASTRONAUTS, Boynton Beach, Fla.; Team 31, LEGO Dub, Alexandroupolis, Greece; and Team 6, LSU Rockets, of Port Allen, La.
• Model Design Award – Team 16, Wandering Moon, Kumming, China.
• Cooperative Model Award – Team 19, Robo Wildcats, Los Angeles; Team 39, Royal Queens, St. Louis; Team 2, LEGO Lions, Kissimmee, Fla.; Team 37, Rockin’ Robots, Renton, Wash.; Team 38, UNIbots, Houston; and Team 43, Brave Builders & Beyond, Camdenton, Mo.
• Innovative Programming Award – Team 7, Planetbot, Merida, Mexico; Team 52, Oxygen, Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam; and Team 36, Aerobic Plan, Nanchang, China.
• Discover and Program Award – Team 55, Sonic Leopards of the Galaxy, Houston; Team 3, Super Space Lamingtons, Wollongong, Australia; Team 27, Eco-moon 2.0, Hong Kong, China; and Team 4, Space Explorers, Chtaura, Lebanon.
• Creative Programming Award – Team 58, LEGO Hurricane, Redmond, Wash.; Team 20, Atlas.Inventor, Kyiv, Ukraine; and Team 35, MoonMachines, Sandy, Utah.
• Programming Design Award – Team 23, Beta WeDo2, Bonners Ferry, Idaho.; and Team 12, Moon Explorer, Beijing.
• Cooperative Programming Award – Team 11, Glow Travellers, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.

Watch highlights from FIRST Championship Houston on FIRSTtv and download select photos from the FIRST Facebook page.

The 2019 FIRST Championship will continue next week in Detroit, Michigan, happening from April 24 to 27 at the Cobo Center and Ford Field. Visit firstchampionship.org to learn more.

2019 FIRST Championship Sponsors

Qualcomm is the 2019 FIRST Championship Presenting Sponsor.

2019 FIRST Championship Lead Sponsors include: Google Inc. and Magna International Inc.

2019 FIRST Championship Event Sponsors include: ABB; The Abbott Fund; Bechtel Corporation; Delta Air Lines; Detroit Metro Convention & Visitors Bureau; The Dow Chemical Company; DTE Energy; FCA Foundation; FedEx; Ford Motor Company; Houston CVB; Keysight Technologies; Lockheed Martin Corporation; National Instruments; Nokia Bell Labs; Rockwell Automation; TE Connectivity; Toyota USA Foundation; Two Sigma Investments; U.S. Air Force; and United Technologies.

2019 FIRST Championship Key Sponsors include: ARMI | BiofabUSA; Autodesk; BAE Systems; BOSCH; Central Michigan University; The Coca-Cola Company; Consumers Energy; Gene Haas Foundation; Hilton; Kettering University; Mouser Electronics; PwC US; Quicken Loans; Southwest Airlines; Texas Instruments; United Therapeutics Corporation; Walt Disney Imagineering; and ZF North America, Inc.

Other 2019 FIRST Championship Supporters include: Alta Resources LLC; Arm; H-E-B; J.R. Automation; and Jacobs.

Save the date! The 2020 FIRST Championship will be held in Houston April 15-18 and Detroit April 29-May 2.

About FIRST^®

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 $80 million in college scholarships, the not-for-profit organization hosts the FIRST^® Robotics Competition for students in Grades 9-12; FIRST^® Tech Challenge for Grades 7-12; FIRST^® LEGO^® League for Grades 4-8; and FIRST^® LEGO^® League Jr. for Grades K-4. 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.firstinspires.org

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20190420005006/en/

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MEDIA CONTACTS:

Brooke Blew, FIRST^®
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603-206-2494
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