Turkey’s Science Heroes Competed at Fuar İzmir

Turkey’s Science Heroes Competed at Fuar İzmir. Among the world’s largest youth and children’s organizations, the 21st season of the FIRST LEGO League Challenge tournament, known as Science Heroes Meet in Turkey, was held at Fuar İzmir. The two-day tournament hosted 70 teams from 27 cities and over 600 students. Awards were presented to the winning teams at a ceremony attended by Izmir Metropolitan Municipality Deputy Mayor Dr. Zafer Levent Yıldır.

The Science Heroes Meet/FIRST LEGO League Challenge Turkey Finals were organized at Fuar İzmir in collaboration with Izmir Metropolitan Municipality, İZFAŞ, and the Science Heroes Association. The tournament, themed SUBMERGED – Ocean Explorers, featured 500 teams and nearly 5,000 children and young participants. After 17 local tournaments, 70 teams from 27 cities competed in the Turkey finals for a chance to qualify for the international tournament.

🏆 Awards Presented to Winning Teams

The participating teams deeply analyzed challenges faced by ocean explorers and developed innovative solutions. They also built and programmed their own LEGO robots to complete specific missions based on the theme. The top-performing teams in the national tournament were honored with awards at the ceremony.

Izmir Metropolitan Municipality Deputy Mayor Dr. Zafer Levent Yıldır presented the “Inspirers” category award to the IBB Tech Pendik team. Additionally, Science Heroes Association President Prof. Dr. Sıddıka Semahat Demir expressed gratitude to Izmir Metropolitan Municipality for their support and presented a plaque to Yıldır.

🌍 Yıldır: “You Are the Future of This Country”

During his speech, Dr. Zafer Levent Yıldır emphasized the crucial role of young people in shaping the future of both Turkey and the world. He stated:

“We are experiencing new things and witnessing the creation of a new world. There are brand-new concepts emerging. You are the future of Izmir, Turkey, and the world. Understanding these changes and working towards sustainable solutions is a necessity. Sustainability is essential. A solution we develop today may become a major problem tomorrow. It is not enough to find a solution; we must also ensure its sustainability.”

🔬 Demir: “Hope Lies in Science”

Science Heroes Association President Prof. Dr. Sıddıka Semahat Demir also addressed the participants:

“I have learned so much from you. We will continue to work tirelessly under the umbrella of our association. We firmly believe that every step we take in the light of science brings us closer to our dream of a better world. With the motto ‘Hope Lies in Science,’ we will keep moving forward.”

🚀 Innovative Solutions & Robotics Challenge

Throughout the tournament, 600+ students were guided by 150 coaches. Teams consisting of 4 to 10 students, aged 9-16, participated in two main categories:
🔹 Innovative Project Development: Teams worked under the guidance of a coach to create innovative solutions for real-world challenges related to the theme.
🔹 Robotics Challenge: Teams designed and programmed autonomous robots to complete missions on specialized LEGO models within 2.5 minutes.

At the end of the competition, 9 teams qualified for the international tournament. The top five teams in the national finals were:

🏆 Champion: KRUSTY KRUBS (Özel Çakabey Lisesi)
🥈 2nd Place: FLAZIA (TED Atakent Koleji Esenyurt Campus)
🥉 3rd Place: SPARK (Ordu Giresun Bahçeşehir College Enver Yücel Campus Science & Technology High School)
🎖️ 4th Place: ROBOGOBİ (Yücel Koyuncu Science & Art Center)
🎖️ 5th Place: ORENDA (Istek Özel Uluğbey Science High School)

Other teams qualifying for the international tournament: TRIDENT, ENTERPRISE JR, ROBOTAV, YDROBOTİX.