By Joseph Varghese/Staff Reporter

More than 3,000 participants from 44 countries took part in the World Robotic Olympiad (WRO) that concluded on Sunday at Al Shaqab Indoor Arena, Education City.

Held under the patronage of HE the Prime Minister and Interior Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Nasser bin Khalifa al-Thani, the three-day science and technology competition was held with the support of the Supreme Education Council (SEC), Maersk Oil Qatar (MoQ), the College of the North Atlantic-Qatar (CNA-Q) and Qatar Petroleum.

The competition, a first in the country, featured 33 teams from Qatar, participating alongside some of the world’s brightest and best young scientists and engineers.

This year’s WRO was one of the largest held since the event began in 2004. It was a key part of Maersk Oil Qatar’s commitment to build Qatar’s Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths skills and capacity for generations to come.

Held under the theme ‘Robot Explorers,’ the competition was represented by the best young science and engineering talent from around the world, who impressed the judges with their exceptional ability to design, build and programme robots capable of performing a series of challenging tasks in record time.

Another highlight of this year’s event included the introduction of the Maersk Oil Qatar ‘Inspiration in Science’ award, which was presented to a Qatari team from Khalid Bin Ahamed Independent Middle School.

The team impressed the judges by demonstrating their collective passion for science, creativity and teamwork as well as their ability to share their enthusiasm and inspirational qualities with others.

Lewis Affleck, managing director of Maersk Oil Qatar, said: “It has been a huge pleasure and privilege to have witnessed so many of the brightest and best science students from Qatar and the rest of the world take part in the 2015 World Robot Olympiad this year. The enthusiasm and atmosphere among the participants, students and teachers was incredible and it is clear that there is a huge appetite for competitions like these."

Fawziya al-Khater, director of the Education Institute, SEC said: “It was inspiring to see so many bright and brilliant students both from Qatar and around the world demonstrate their programming and engineering skills. Building this level of participation, enthusiasm and engagement around these vitally important disciplines has been the focus for the various progressive policies and practices adopted by the SEC.”

The next WRO will be held in India and the WRO flag was handed over to Indian officials led by Ambassador Sanjiv Arora at a handover ceremony.

The winning teams and countries announced at the World Robot Olympiad 2015 are:

Regular Category – Elementary Level

1st Place – Storm Divers, India
2nd Place – Thunder Divers, India
3rd Place – Taiwan Legend, Chinese Taipei

Regular Category – Junior Level

1st Place – Dzeta, Russia
2nd Place – TAIWAN Ba-Soulburn Ho Jia, Chinese Taipei
3rd Place – RoboTecnia Versus, Mexico

Regular Category – Senior Level

1st Place – TAIWAN YES, Chinese Taipei
2nd Place – robotics X, Japan
3rd Place – Ninja, Japan

Open Category – Elementary School Level

1st Place – YC EXPLORER RANGER, Malaysia
2nd Place – Robofriends, Russia
3rd Place – THE FISHERMEN'S FRIEND, Malaysia

Open Category – Junior Level

1st Place – ROBOTISTS, Malaysia
2nd Place – Shadow Bots, India
3rd Place – Schollibotics, Germany

Open Category – Senior Level

1st Place – BURITOS, Russia
2nd Place – Power, Chinese Taipei
3rd Place – SILENT PRODIGIES, Malaysia

GEN II Football

1st Place – ARAMAITEE FC, Malaysia
2nd Place – RoboSpecialists, Greece
3rd Place – DBS, Hong Kong

University Regular

1st Place – NCTU Robotics, Chinese Taipei
2nd Place – PML30, Russia
3rd Place – AVRCB, Chinese Taipei