The event held at the University of Queensland from 18-20 October marked the 25th anniversary of the national championships, bringing together over 650 students.

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Teams travelled from as far as South Korea and New Zealand to compete.

The competition spans two consecutive days, featuring four different robotics challenges: OnStage, Rescue Line, Rescue Maze, and Soccer.

At stake was the opportunity to qualify for the Robotic World Cup in Brazil in 2025.

A select cohort of students from years 8-10 represented CHHS at the tournament: Aurora Briscoe, Shayla Reeve, Adam Patrzala, Jazz Jones, Jacob Lindeman, Grace Askew and Cooper Boese.

Split into three teams, students showcased their prowess in various robotic activities.

“Team Gargoyle” (Grace, Jazz and Cooper) secured an impressive fifth place in the Open Division of RoboCup soccer.

In this category, participants were tasked with designing, building, and programming two robots to engage in a game of Robot Soccer against an opposing pair of robots.

CHHS Head Teacher Mathematics (F2F) Mr James Langley expressed pride in the students ability to innovate, highlighting their incorporation of advanced 4WD technology in their robotic design.

“At the very first meeting of the CHHS Robotics Team, the students decided they wanted to step up the complexity of our robot soccer player design to a 4WD,” said Mr Langley.

“This design is used by the top teams globally, including the previous World Champions of the RCJA.

“To get as far as they did in their first year with a new design, is a credit to the students’ inventiveness and tireless application, including after school workshops.

“The team’s performance suggested good outcomes in the coming seasons.”

Reflecting on their experiences, Team Gargoyle acknowledged areas for improvement, such as incorporating line sensors to enhance field navigation.

Jazz and Grace highlighted the rewarding yet challenging nature of the competition.

“This event was very challenging,” said Jazz, “including issues associated with electronics, mechanics and coding.”

“But overall the competition was a lot of fun.”

Grace told NOTA the competition was “a great learning experience”.

Local sponsors, including Gibson Engineering of Kendall and Laurieton Rotary, helped cover students’ accommodation costs.

“Access to a pool was very handy for defragging frazzled brains at the end of a day of intense competition,” said Mr Langley.

By Kim AMBROSE