NEWS!
We’re incredibly proud to share that in April 2025, one of our Year 11 students, Ollie Blackwell, competed in Hoston Texas at the 2025 FIRST Robotics World Finals with Team 4788 – “Can’t Control”, representing Curtin University.
Ollie’s team was one of over 3,700 teams globally, with only 600 qualifying for this prestigious international event, which brings together the world’s best and brightest young minds in STEM. Not only did they compete with a robot they designed and engineered themselves, but they also stood out in the Impact Award category—recognising teams for their positive, lasting influence in their communities. Team 4788 was named one of just six finalists worldwide in this award!
On the final day, after a nail-biting alliance selection process, #4788 was chosen as the fourth robot in the top alliance of their playoff division. Their alliance went on to win the division and advanced to the elite Einstein playoffs—the grand final round of the competition, where only 32 of the 600 teams compete. Curtin is now the third Australian team ever to reach this stage. Although their alliance was knocked out in the second round, being selected for Einstein is an extraordinary honour that recognises excellence in robot design, strategy, teamwork, and communication.
Even more exciting? Ollie is bringing all this experience home to Cecil’s Robotics Team, where he’s already collaborating with his peers to prepare for the Western Australian Robotics Playoffs (WARP) in August. With inside knowledge of Curtin’s robot and high-level competition insight, Ollie is hoping to help build a robot that could be strategically chosen as an alliance partner by Curtin in the next local comp!
A huge thank you to Mrs Simmonds, Mrs Hardy, Mika, and the rest of the STEAM team for leading our robotics program—and a special congratulations to Ollie for his passion, creativity, and commitment to STEAM excellence. 🌟
