“F1 in Schools Hong Kong Finals 2023” Concluded on a High Note with Three Winning Teams Entering the World Finals 2024 Showcasing Students’ Talents in Engineering, Collaboration, and Creativity

(Hong Kong, 27 December 2023) Recently, “HKPC FutureSkills” successfully hosted the “F1 in Schools Hong Kong Finals 2023”, bringing together young and talented STEAM students to compete for the regional championship title. Following the overwhelming response last year, a total of 60 secondary school students in Hong Kong participated in the competition this year, showcasing their engineering brilliance and perseverance. The top three winning teams, Lingnan Dr. Chung Wing Kwong Memorial Secondary School, Baptist Wing Lung Secondary School, and Shatin Pui Ying College, will represent Hong Kong, China and compete at the “F1 in Schools World Finals 2024”.

Established in 1999 in the United Kingdom, the programme has involved over 26,000 schools across 50 regions. “F1 in Schools Hong Kong Finals 2022” witnessed intense competition last year. After a fierce battle among 72 students, four teams are qualified to participate in the “F1 in Schools World Finals 2023” (World Finals 2023) held in Sentosa, Singapore, due to their outstanding performances. Notably, a team demonstrated cross-regional cooperation by partnering with students from Malaysia.

The World Finals 2023 attracted 68 teams from 26 countries and regions. For the first time, Hong Kong sent representatives to participate in the competition, showing the world the results of their efforts for taking their idea from conceptualisation to successful implementation. A student from the Hong Kong, China team said that participating in world-level STEAM competitions like the F1 in Schools helps them broaden their horizons, build confidence, and improve their interest and initiative in engineering. After the contest, students were privileged to accompany the host to the pit lane of the Singapore Grand Prix to visit the meticulous preparation of racing teams, which was an eye-opening experience for them to witness the world-class event featuring top-notch F1 racers.

The F1 in Schools Hong Kong challenge consists of two racing classes - Development Class (Preliminary rounds) and Professional Class (Finals). Participants competed in teams, and each team represented their secondary schools. Following the preliminary rounds in August, 10 teams showcased their unique strategies and advanced successfully to the Hong Kong Finals, striving to secure a spot in the World Finals. Ultimately, the following three winning teams will represent Hong Kong, China at the F1 in Schools World Finals 2024:

1. Lingnan Dr. Chung Wing Kwong Memorial Secondary School (Champion)
2. Baptist Wing Lung Secondary School (1st Runner-Up)
3. Shatin Pui Ying College (2nd Runner-Up)

Prof Hon William Kam-fai WONG, a Member of the Legislative Council, presented the awards and delivered a speech, “Hong Kong has always been supporting STEAM education. A few years ago, the HKSAR Government launched the ‘IT Innovation Lab in Schools’ programme, and regularly organises and sponsors extracurricular activities related to information technology (IT). I have the distinct privilege of serving as the Chairman of the Vetting Committee for this programme. In addition to participating in F1 in Schools activities, I encourage everyone to actively engage in other related STEAM education activities to enhance students' IT skills.”

Mr Mohamed BUTT, Executive Director of HKPC, said, “HKPC is very honoured to continue organising the F1 in Schools programme and competition. It is really encouraging to witness the enthusiastic participation of students in the F1 in Schools Hong Kong Finals, showcasing their innovative spirit and determination to progress. The students who represented Hong Kong in the World Finals 2023 also shared their invaluable experience from competing on a global scale. We hope their perseverance will be carried forward to the next generation, ensuring the continuity of this programme. With the experience gained from this year's World Final, we believe that students will excel even further in the upcoming year, bringing glory to Hong Kong! To nurture more future innovation and technology (I&T) talent, HKPC will continue providing support for the development and organisation of F1 in Schools activities, allowing it to thrive in Hong Kong, so that more local students can step onto the world stage to join this international STEAM learning programme and promote Hong Kong as an international I&T centre.”

As a non-profit global educational initiative, F1 in Schools aims to provide a systematic, engineering-centred STEAM curriculum to enhance students' engineering, team management and presentation skills. Similar to actual Formula 1 races, students are required to design and manufacture their own race car models by utilising computer-aided design (CAD) and computer-aided manufacturing (CAM) tools. Then, these models will be propelled by compressed air for the competition.

In 2022, supported by the General Support Programme of the Innovation and Technology Fund of the HKSAR Government, HKPC introduced the F1 in Schools Programme in Hong Kong. This year, “HKPC FutureSkills” keeps working alongside the Hong Kong coordinator of the programme, Yondar Limited, to conduct a series of STEAM courses and competitions, in which the programme has expanded its curriculum to primary schools. This initiative aims to cultivate the interest of students in engineering from a young age, nurture the next generation of engineers, expand the pool of future I&T talent, and promote the development of I&T in Hong Kong for a better future.

F1 in Schools will continue to provide engaging professional training courses and thrilling competitions to enhance students’ learning experience by incorporating interactive and enjoyable elements, with the goal of increasing students’ interest in engineering and nurturing the engineers of the future, hence building a better tomorrow for Hong Kong.

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Hong Kong, China Teams launched their journey to the “F1 in Schools World Finals 2023” in Sentosa, Singapore in September this year.

The top three winning teams will represent Hong Kong, China to participate in the “F1 in Schools World Finals 2024”: Lingnan Dr. Chung Wing Kwong Memorial Secondary School (Champion), Baptist Wing Lung Secondary School (1st Runner-Up), and Shatin Pui Ying College (2nd Runner-Up).