PREMIERE | Moldova claims 2nd place with student-built robot
The RoboRangers team from the Tekwill Academy Kids educational center achieved 2nd place and won the Inspire Award at the international FIRST Tech Challenge Istanbul Premier Event. This achievement marks a significant milestone for the Republic of Moldova, as it is the country's first recognition in the international FIRST Tech Challenge circuit, a global program that operates in 81 countries.
The FIRST Tech Challenge is an international robotics competition for students in which teams design, build, and program robots to compete in a new game each season.
According to the organizers, this competition places the Republic of Moldova in a global arena where excellence is recognized through technical performance, strategy, documentation, collaboration, and community impact.
The Inspire Award is the most prestigious juried award in the competition. It is presented to teams that demonstrate overall excellence—this includes the robot's performance, the quality of engineering solutions, technical documentation, promotion of STEM education, professionalism, and the ability to inspire other young people.
Florin Cazac, the Manager of Robotics Programs at Tekwill Academy Kids and the coach of the RoboRangers team, noted that this award reflects the team’s efforts across all evaluated areas.
“Our team has made significant efforts to excel in all the areas necessary for a top competitor in the FIRST Tech Challenge: robot development, strategy, documentation, community impact, and collaboration. The Inspire Award is particularly important as it acknowledges this cumulative performance,” he stated.
He emphasized that the achievement is especially noteworthy because the Republic of Moldova's team has managed to compete on equal footing with experienced teams from other countries within just two years.
“We are thrilled that, in such a short time, we have been able to compete against many strong teams, including those from Romania, which has an impressive track record in this competition, and to achieve such a high ranking. This result reflects our hard work, the high standards we set for ourselves, and the significance of a training environment that encourages students to think critically, test their ideas, and grow as an engineering team,” said Florin Cazac.
In the 2024–2025 edition, the program gathered over 109,000 students from 81 countries.
The team's participation in the competition was supported by Tekwill Academy Kids, the Innovate Moldova program (funded by Sweden and the United Kingdom), Grafit Holding, the team's general partner, and the Fineguide.ai platform.
Representatives from the organizers emphasize that the success of the RoboRangers highlights the progress of educational robotics in the Republic of Moldova. This journey began with the launch of the National Educational Robotics Program in 2014 and has been strengthened through the support of international partners. The achievements of Moldovan students in competitions such as FIRST Global and FIRST Tech Challenge demonstrate the maturation of this field, transforming it into a genuine space for excellence.
Veronica Eșanu, coordinator of the National Educational Robotics Program, states, "The performances of Moldovan teams in international competitions show that consistent investment in educational robotics yields real results. We see teams competing with technical expertise, well-prepared documentation, strategic planning, and confidence, which speaks volumes about the direction in which this field is developing in the Republic of Moldova."
The current RoboRangers team is the fourth generation of this group and maintains a legacy of significant national and international achievements.
Every year, Tekwill Academy Kids supports the training of around 1,000 children in technology-related fields, with more than 300 of them participating in robotics programs offered through annual courses, summer camps, and competitive events.
