Earlier last night I was watching FIRST Global (IFCA)'s 2024 FIRST Global Challenge opening ceremony, and I saw this promotion video in the livestream that says, "Robotics is a Sport." As someone who has taken part in competitive robotics, both as a team member in high school and a mentor when I graduated, this relates strongly to me. #Robotics, indeed, is a sport - it might sound a bit weird to some people, and certainly to me 2 years ago when I started doing it, but I truly believe it has everything it takes to qualify as a sport. It's the sport of the minds, where cold hard knowledge in science, technology, engineering and mathematics meets great creativity and artistry, and the best thing about competitive robotics in high school (or any school in general) is that it inspires everyone involved to be more involved in science and engineering, and most importantly, to use this power to do good things and improve our world.
Despite not being a FIRST alumnus myself (as I never got to compete in an actual FIRST event), I was certainly inspired by them, and looking back at it, I honestly could not believe that it was my first contact with robotics back in the summer of 2022 that has taken me this far, and to now be majoring in Robotics at university. This experience has also shown to me that people would succeed better if they succeed together as a team (hence #Coopertition), and this is something that I have always emphasized to the teams I mentored. To me, this is the defining factor that makes robotics a sport.
I'd like to see more students of this and future generations to be involved in competitive robotics - not just those offered by FIRST, even though I have mentioned them quite a lot in this post - just like any sport, and to be inspired by it, whether simply to be a good person or to create groundbreaking advancements to humanity's progress. And finally, to the team from my home country of Vietnam, I wish you all the best of luck - you guys absolutely rock, and I'll be here in Australia watching your matches ;)
Bright future ahead!