Dominican Students Compete in 2026 Global Robotics Challenge

Six students representing the Dominican Republic took part in the 2026 FIRST Global Challenge in Incheon, South Korea, joining one of the world’s largest international youth robotics competitions. The event ran from October 7 to 10 and brought together high school-aged participants from nearly 190 countries and territories to demonstrate their engineering, programming and problem-solving skills.

The Dominican delegation scored 514 points in one of its matches, according to results reported during the competition. The initial announcement placed the country 49th, although the official FIRST Global results have since shown different positions at different stages of the event. The final ranking should therefore be distinguished from preliminary standings. The official Dominican team results provide the competition’s scoring information.

Six Students Represent the Dominican Republic

The Dominican team comprised Mauricio Santos, Yariel García Ramos, Annet Vasquez, Freund Tavárez Sigmund, Esthefany Chaleyca González Santos and Lia López Castro, according to reporting published in the Dominican Republic.

The students participated through the national initiative supported by the FIRST Global Dominican Republic Foundation, which promotes youth development in robotics, programming, engineering and other STEM disciplines—science, technology, engineering and mathematics.

The program’s preparation process includes national selection, technical training and intensive preparation camps. The initiative aims to help young people develop practical skills and gain experience working on technological challenges in an international environment.

The 2026 participation marked the fifth consecutive year that the Dominican Republic had sent a delegation through the foundation’s national representation program, according to local reporting. Organizers also acknowledged the contributions of families, mentors, sponsors, volunteers and partner organizations involved in preparing the students.

Robotics Challenge Focused on Wildfire Prevention

This year’s competition theme, “Igniting Innovation,” centered on the growing global challenge of wildfires. Participating teams designed and operated robots in a game inspired by wildfire prevention, mitigation and recovery, combining engineering tasks with strategic problem-solving.

According to FIRST Global’s official announcement, teams also worked in multinational alliances that changed throughout the competition. This format required students to collaborate with participants from other countries while competing on the field.

The event’s purpose extended beyond match results. FIRST Global describes its annual challenge as an Olympic-style robotics competition intended to encourage young people to pursue science and technology while developing communication, leadership, teamwork and problem-solving abilities.

For Dominican students, participation provided an opportunity to apply technical knowledge under international competition conditions and exchange ideas with peers from different educational and cultural backgrounds.

International Results and Award Winners

The competition concluded on October 10, with Venezuela, El Salvador, Uzbekistan and the Republic of Moldova forming the winning alliance in the tournament finals. The United Arab Emirates, Japan, Hong Kong, China, and Luxembourg earned silver, while the People’s Republic of China, Turkmenistan, the Cayman Islands and Türkiye received bronze.

Uzbekistan also won the FIRST Global Grand Challenge Award, which recognizes the team accumulating the most points across the tournament. Mexico received the Albert Einstein Award for FIRST Global International Excellence, while the Cayman Islands won the FG Innovator Award for the New Technology Experience.

These awards recognize different aspects of the competition, from match performance to engineering innovation and international participation. They are separate from the rankings recorded during qualification matches.

Madrid to Host the 2027 Competition

At the closing ceremony, FIRST Global announced that Madrid, Spain, will host the 2027 FIRST Global Challenge. The next edition will continue the organization’s effort to bring students from countries around the world together through robotics and STEM education.

For the Dominican Republic, continued participation offers a platform for students to strengthen their technical capabilities and gain exposure to international engineering challenges. The long-term value of these programs will depend on sustained training opportunities, access to equipment and mentorship, and the ability to apply the skills acquired through competition to further education and technological projects.