A local FIRST LEGO League (FLL) robotic team in Gainesville recently won the Innovation Project Finalist Award while competing at the 2026 FIRST Championship on April 29-May 2 in Houston. 

According to the FLL, the Innovation Project Finalist Award winner “utilizes diverse resources for their Innovation Project to help them gain a comprehensive understanding of their problem; has a creative, well-researched solution; and effectively communicates their findings to judges and the community.” 

The Turbo Gatorbots are made up of five students from The Frazer School, including Daniel Chi (fourth grade), James Du (seventh grade), Dennis Chi (seventh grade), Jacob Li (seventh grade) and Andrew Zhao (seventh grade). 

In an email sent to Mainstreet, Eric Jing Du, co-coach of the Turbo Gatorbots, said the team’s Innovation Project “combines radar technology and acoustic positioning to create high-accuracy 3D models for archaeology and underground facility detection, a creative solution with real-world applications in cultural heritage protection and urban infrastructure.” 

In a separate email reply to Mainstreet, Eric Jing Du said what makes winning an award significant is the “level of competition” at the FIRST Championship. 

“There were 160 teams from more than 60 countries representing some of the best young STEM students from around the world,” he said. “Reaching the Innovation Project Finalist stage means the students’ work stood out not only technically, but also in terms of creativity, research depth and real-world impact.” 

Oscar Chi, who also serves as a coach for the Turbo Gatorbots, added to Eric Jing Du’s comments.  

“I also think this reflects the strength of the local STEM community in Gainesville,” Oscar Chi said in a statement provided to Mainstreet. “These students were willing to spend countless weekends learning engineering, programming, public speaking, and teamwork entirely because they were passionate about solving a meaningful problem. As a coach, it was incredibly rewarding to watch them grow not just as competitors, but as young innovators.”