Organised by the CCS, with the support of the RIF

The participation of the Cypriot student robotics teams in the World Robot Olympiad (WRO) 2026 Open Championship Europe has successfully concluded. The competition took place from 13 to 16 October 2026 in Zagreb, Croatia, bringing together teams from around the world.

The Cypriot delegation was organised by the Cyprus Computer Society (CCS), with the support of the Research and Innovation Foundation (RIF).

This year's theme, “Robots Meet Culture”, brought robotics closer to art and cultural heritage. The Cypriot teams faced demanding programming and engineering challenges, as well as unexpected tasks requiring quick thinking, adaptability and teamwork.

The Teams Representing Cyprus

Three teams from The STEM Education Cyprus, participated in the competition:

• Robobrains (Elementary): Alexei Ulyanov and Dmitri Grigoriev secured 14th place, demonstrating consistent performance and high mechanical reliability.
• The Puzzlers (Junior): Nikola Marinov, Doruk Guleryuz and Alexander Grigoriev finished in 48th place in the Junior category, tackling complex logic and programming challenges with determination.
• The Spedz (Senior): Leonidas Sfaltos, Zichen Zhang and Ioannis Ioannou secured 36th place, taking on demanding autonomous navigation and mechanical engineering challenges.

Reflecting on the experience, team coach Periklis Cheng noted that competing in Zagreb provided students with valuable exposure to international engineering standards and opportunities to develop problem-solving skills under pressure.

Also participating was Dream Team (Elementary), an independent team from AP Robotics, consisted of Christophoros Phinikarides, Marcos Petrou and Panagiotis Lagos, and secured 34th place among 43 teams in its category. Commenting on the team's participation, coach Antonis Phinikarides said: “We faced several difficulties and unexpected challenges, finishing in 34th place among 43 teams. Beyond the result, however, the children had the opportunity to test their knowledge and skills, work together, learn from their mistakes and meet teams from different countries.”

Beyond the competition results, WRO 2026 offered all students a unique opportunity to gain international experience, exchange knowledge and meet peers from around the world.

The Cyprus Computer Society (CCS) warmly congratulates all students and coaches on their efforts and for proudly representing Cyprus. It also extends its sincere thanks to the Research and Innovation Foundation (RIF) for its continued and valuable support. The national WRO Cyprus competition was also supported by STEM Education Hellas, IET Cyprus, and ΧΜ and was hosted by the European University Cyprus.