Team Blue Knights raced through their way at the Shell Eco-Marathon Philippines, placing 2nd runner-up out of 14 competing teams on Internal Combustion Engine (ICE) prototype concept on fuel efficiency from the said competition.

The event, which was held at the Clark International Speedway in Mabalacat, Pampanga, was participated by 25 teams, including the Ateneo de Davao University’s Team Blue Knights.

Representatives from AdDU were engineering students Lilibeth Diane Yu, Jakal Suyo (team captain), John Ren del Oeste (team driver), Lyfe Daniel Fernandez (reserve driver), Kurt Irving Barcelona, Rolly Sarifa Jr., Sean Adam Fortuna, Zechariah Lasa, and Marius Paulo Barcena, together with their team adviser Engr. Jon Joseph Mahinay.

This was the team’s third time to join in the event, with their first two participations in the SEM Asia.

Yu, Team Blue Knights’ team manager shared how their team prepared for the big event.

“Whole school year namin tong tinrabaho since thesis na rin ng mga graduating members. Talagang nakakapagod. Parati kaming walang tulog, pero in the end it was all worth it,” she said.
Yu further shared on how participating in SEM Philippines was indeed a once in a lifetime experience for them.

“Ang dami naming natutunan individually and as a team. Kailangan marunong kang dumiskarte, and hard work is really what it takes to win the competition. Talent wins games but teamwork wins championships and I will always be proud to be part of Team Blue Knights,” she said.

“It’s really overwhelming. Nung awards night, the feeling was so surreal. Our time and effort paid off and, and ang bumalik sa amin, was more than what was expected. Talagang hindi ko nakalimutan ‘yung motto namin from the start na ‘if you want to go fast, go alone, But we want to go far, so we went together’,” she added.

Shell Eco-Marathon, as hosted by Shell Pilipinas for this year, is an international event that aims to spark an advancement of technology through fuel efficiency by challenging students “to design, build and drive the most energy-efficient cars.”

(Featured photo grabbed from Sean Fortuna’s Twitter account.)

https://twitter.com/causeitsYU/status/827466382560292869