15 school teams participated in F1 in Schools Greece – National Finals hosted at the Mall Athens Shopping Centre, from 28th to 30th April 2017.
NewGen Motors, a team of students from the Senior High School of Filothei in Athens, crowned the F1 in Schools Greece National Champions 2017.
In second place was Omega Racing from Ekpaideytiki Anagennisi School, in third place was Tachytis from Erasmios Greek German School, and in the fourth place was Achaia Racing Team (A.R.T.) from the Arsakeio School in Patra.
All the above teams won the opportunity to represent Greece in the 2017 World Championships in Kuala Lumpur Malaysia.
The F1 in Schools is an international STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics) competition for students aged 9-19 and aims to help change the perceptions of STEM subjects by creating a fun learning environment for young people.
Student teams in groups of 3–6 students have to design and manufacture a miniature “car” out of the official F1 Model Block using CAD/CAM design tools. The cars are powered by CO2 cartridges and are attached to a track by a nylon wire. They are timed from the moment they are launched to when they pass the finish line by a computer.
The cars have to follow specific guidelines (e.g. the wheels of the car must be in contact with the track at all times). The cars are raced on a 20m long track with two lanes, to allow two cars to be raced simultaneously. Software called F1 Virtual Wind Tunnel was designed specifically for the challenge. F1 Virtual Wind Tunnel or F1 VWT uses computational fluid dynamics (CFD) to simulate air resistance on the “cars” made in the CAD.
The competition is currently operational in over 40 different countries. The competition was first introduced in the UK in 1999. The competition is held annually, with Regional and National Finals. The overall winners of the National Finals are invited to compete at the World Finals, which are held at a different location each year, usually held in conjunction with a Formula One Grand Prix.
In the Greek competition; there are 3 classes of entry. Formula One Class aimed at 11-to-19 year olds, Rookie Class aimed at 11-to-15 year olds from new schools and The Jaguar Primary School Challenge aimed at 5-to-11 year olds.