Three Orang Asli pupils win gold at International Robot Olympiad

Three Orang Asli pupils win gold at International Robot Olympiad

SEPANG: Three Orang Asli pupils from Sekolah Kebangsaan Pengkalan Tereh, Kluang, Johor, have brought pride to Malaysia after winning the gold medal in the Creative Idea (Primary School) category at the 27th International Robot Olympiad (IRO2025) in Gold Coast, Australia.

The team’s teacher-adviser, Muhammad Fakhri Che Lah, said their outstanding achievement in designing a robot rover to study the surface of Mars was the result of meticulous preparation over the course of a year.

“They prepared with continuous training in school, with pupils developing various robot designs according to the space theme before selecting the most suitable design during the competition,” he told reporters at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport after their arrival today.

Team member Vyonnie Jezzy James Marcel, 12, said she did not expect her team to emerge as champions as the assignment required them to act fast and accurately.

“There were difficult parts and easy parts too. We were given four hours, but we completed the robot in three and a half hours. We used two sensors — a high screen line sensor and an ultrasonic sensor,” she said, adding that their robot outperformed teams from 15 other countries.

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Meanwhile, Petrosains Learning Department and Satellite Centre director Norhana Hamim said the success demonstrated the effectiveness of Petrosains Tech4All’s inclusive approach in empowering Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) education.

“What we witnessed today is a very meaningful achievement. It shows the programme’s effectiveness when children are given the right platform and programmes suited to their backgrounds,” she said.

She added that the victory also dispelled misconceptions that Orang Asli students are incapable of competing at the international level.

The Malaysian contingent at IRO2025 included 15 Orang Asli primary school pupils and also secured a bronze medal and three technical awards, supported by strategic partnerships between Petrosains, the Education Ministry, and the Offshore Petroleum Industry Training Organisation (OPITO).