{"id":109986,"date":"2026-06-01T14:47:23","date_gmt":"2026-06-01T18:47:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/?p=109986"},"modified":"2026-06-03T17:04:23","modified_gmt":"2026-06-03T21:04:23","slug":"international-robotics-championship-to-draw-youth-innovators-from-around-the-world","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/2026\/06\/international-robotics-championship-to-draw-youth-innovators-from-around-the-world\/","title":{"rendered":"International robotics championship to draw youth innovators from around the world"},"content":{"rendered":"

Brock University will soon become a testing ground for innovation when thousands of young competitors from across the globe arrive with their robots designed to tackle archaeology-themed challenges.<\/p>\n

The Canada Cup of Robotics \u2013 Niagara 2026<\/u><\/a>\u00a0will bring fast-paced competition, student teamwork and more than 5,000 participants, mentors and spectators to the University\u2019s main campus and the adjacent Canada Park Games from June 14 to 20.<\/p>\n

Hosted by Brock in partnership with FIRST <\/em>Robotics Canada, the international championship will feature competitions involving students from more than 30 countries. The FIRST<\/em>\u00a0Tech Challenge (FTC) from June 14 to 16 will see participants aged 12 to 18 use their robots to compete in head-to-head challenges, while the FIRST<\/em> LEGO League (FLL) from June 17 to 20 invites participants aged nine to 14 to design, build, test and program robots using LEGO Education robotics technology.<\/p>\n

The event will transform athletic spaces and common areas into competition arenas where teams will collaborate under pressure with robots of their own design.<\/p>\n

Alongside the matches themselves, the week will include educational exhibits, team socials, visits to Niagara\u2019s iconic attractions and volunteer-led programming designed to foster global collaboration through science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM).<\/p>\n

For Brock\u2019s Faculty of Mathematics and Science, the championship reflects the University\u2019s commitment to advancing robotics and experiential STEM education.<\/p>\n

\u201cHosting an international event of this scale supports Brock\u2019s role as a hub for scientific learning, collaboration and community engagement,\u201d said Peter Berg, Dean of the Faculty of Mathematics and Science. \u201cWe can\u2019t wait to welcome the world \u2014 including these bright young competitors \u2014 to Brock for the Canada Cup of Robotics.\u201d<\/p>\n

Despite its name, organizers say the competition is designed to extend far beyond robotics. Students work in teams to develop technical skills while also learning communication, leadership and problem-solving in a fast-paced environment.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe want students to leave inspired not only by robots but also by the connections they make and the confidence they build throughout the competition,\u201d said Paul Zelisko, Brock Chair and Professor of Chemistry and a member of the University\u2019s organizing committee for the event. \u201cWe hope the event motivates young learners to further pursue their passion.\u201d<\/p>\n

Canada Cup of Robotics \u2014 Niagara 2026<\/strong><\/p>\n

What:<\/strong>\u00a0FIRST<\/em>\u00a0Tech Challenge (FTC) and FIRST<\/em>\u00a0LEGO League (FLL) events
\nWhen:<\/strong>\u00a0June 14 to 16 (FTC) and June 17 to 20 (FLL)
\nWhere:<\/strong>\u00a0Brock University\u2019s St. Catharines campus and the adjacent Canada Games Park, Niagara region
\nWho:<\/strong>\u00a0More than 5,000 students, mentors and families from around the world<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Brock University will soon become a testing ground for innovation when thousands of young competitors from across the globe arrive with their robots designed to tackle archaeology-themed challenges.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":94,"featured_media":109987,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[9794,7484,3319,4052,41,4767,1],"tags":[11446,1958,348,14240,14239,7980],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/109986"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/94"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=109986"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/109986\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":110001,"href":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/109986\/revisions\/110001"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/109987"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=109986"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=109986"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=109986"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}