Vietnam ranked high at the 2023 World Robot Olympiad held in Panama marking the competition of 415 teams from 81 countries.

HKN-B1-01 team from Huynh Khuong Ninh Secondary School in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, won the silver in the competition for the Elementary category competed by students aged between 8 and 12. 

Vietnam wins big at the 2023 World Robot Olympiad. Photos: LEGO Education

Hong Bang 4 team from Hong Bang Secondary School in Ho Chi Minh City also won the silver for the Junior category, gathering students at the ages of 11 to 15, just behind the teams from leading countries in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) like Japan and Germany.

Meanwhile, the VIET ROBOT B3-02 team from Vietrobot Education and the WE ARE FROM VIETNAM team from the Kids Engineer Center bagged silvers for the Senior category designed for students of 14-19 years of age. In this category, the teams from Vietnam competed with those from leading STEM countries like Japan, Switzerland, India, and Egypt.

Hong Bang 2 and Hong Bang 1 teams from Hong Bang Secondary School in Ho Chi Minh City ranked third and fourth, respectively, for the RoboSports category, with points equal to the team from Germany. This category is the most difficult one in the competition that marked representatives of the world’s leading countries in STEM, like Denmark, Japan, Singapore, South Korea, and the US. 

Hong Bang 2 team of Vietnam ranks 6th in the global ranking.

Other Vietnamese teams, namely WELLSPRING SG 01, HONG BANG 5, VIET ROBOT B2-01, WS.AIDs, WS_DTMKK, VIET ROBOT B4-02, WELLSPRING SG 05, PORTERROR.WS from Wellspring Saigon, Wellspring Hanoi, Hong Bang Ho Chi Minh City, Vietrobot Education, and Kids Engineer won the bronzes.

First held in 2004, the World Robot Olympiad, based on national robotics competitions in its member countries, is the world’s biggest robot competition attracting roughly 25,000 students worldwide every year to represent their countries at the world final round, which is held rotately in member countries.

The competitions help young people develop their creativity and problem-solving skills in a fun and engaging way. There, many young people are allowed to explore STEM topics and robotics.

Teams in 2023 will gain knowledge of the infrastructure supporting our digital technology and shipping logistics. They will look into how robots can contribute to the safer, more sustainable, and more effective operations of the digital technology infrastructure and shipping industries.

This year’s four categories included RoboMission, RoboSports, Future Innovators, and Future Engineers.

The 2023 rounds in Vietnam attracted more than 400 teams with 1,200 students in qualifying rounds held in Ho Chi Minh City on July 29-30 and in Haiphong on August 12-13 and the final round on August 19-20 at Phenikaa University in Hanoi. The contest was held by the Embassy of Denmark in Vietnam, Vietnamese company Viet Tinh Anh JSC, and Denmark-based LEGO Education in support of Vinamilk. 

The 2023 World Robot Olympiad attracts 415 teams from 81 countries.