Dubai, UAE, September, 2026: Sheikh Rashid bin Hamdan bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Supreme President of Hamdan Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Foundation for Medical and Educational Sciences, honoured students from the Hamdan Centre for Giftedness and Innovation who achieved outstanding results at the FIRST® LEGO® League Asia Open Championship 2026 and received academic awards through the FitzEd 2026 Summer Programme at Fitzwilliam College, University of Cambridge. The ceremony was attended by H.E. Humaid Mohammed Al Qatami, Chairman of the Foundation’s Board of Trustees, members of the Board, a number of officials, as well as the students’ parents and school principals.
The recognition included the Hamdan Centre for Giftedness and Innovation team that participated in the FIRST® LEGO® League Asia Open Championship 2026 in Beijing, China, where it secured second place in the Champion’s Award, becoming the first UAE team to rank among the top three in this category and achieving the highest-ever placement by a UAE team in international FIRST® LEGO® League competitions.
The achievement was secured by Hamdan Rashid Al Mansoori, Khaled Mohammed Al Amadi, Abdulkarim Yousuf Bu Khashm, Abdullah Fahad Al Mahmoud and Sayed Mansour Sayed Hassan Al Hashemi during the championship, held from 13 to 16 August 2026. The competition featured challenges spanning robotics, programming, research, innovation and teamwork.
The Champion’s Award is one of the leading distinctions presented at FIRST® LEGO® League competitions and recognises a team’s overall performance across the competition’s core areas, including the Innovation Project, Robot Design, Robot Performance and Core Values. Securing second place reflects the advanced level demonstrated by the students across science, technology, engineering and innovation.
The team qualified for the international championship after winning the FIRST LEGO League Dubai competition and being crowned UAE champions for the 2025–2026 season, earning the opportunity to represent the country at the international competition in Beijing.
Sheikh Rashid bin Hamdan also honoured three female students from the Hamdan Centre for Giftedness and Innovation who received four academic awards during their participation in the FitzEd 2026 Summer Programme at Fitzwilliam College, University of Cambridge, in recognition of their excellence in research, academic performance and presentations.
Hessa Khaled Al Jaber, who participated in the Robotics course, was recognised for producing one of the two best research essays in her course. Muzna Al Balushi, who participated in the Business Economics course, received the same distinction, with her research essay also selected among the top two in her course.
Maryam Al Mulla, who participated in the Business Economics course, received two distinctions. She was recognised as one of the two top-performing students in her course, while her presentation was also selected as one of the two best presentations across all courses in FitzEd Summer School 2026.
FitzEd is an academic summer programme hosted by Fitzwilliam College at the University of Cambridge in partnership with CAMSIS Education. It provides international students with an intensive academic experience combining study, research, academic discussions and individual projects, helping participants develop their research, analytical, independent thinking and academic communication skills.
H.E. Humaid Mohammed Al Qatami, Chairman of the Board of Trustees of Hamdan Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Foundation for Medical and Educational Sciences, said: “We are proud of the achievements of the students of the Hamdan Centre for Giftedness and Innovation across a number of international platforms. These accomplishments reflect the scientific and creative capabilities of UAE students and their ability to compete and achieve leading positions globally. The robotics team’s success at the FIRST® LEGO® League championship, together with the four academic awards achieved by our students in the FitzEd programme at the University of Cambridge, demonstrates the importance of providing gifted students with high-quality opportunities to test their capabilities and develop their skills in advanced educational and competitive environments.”
Al Qatami added: “Supporting gifted students goes beyond identifying their abilities. It requires an integrated pathway that develops those abilities and empowers students to transform their knowledge and ideas into tangible achievements through training, practical experience, competition and participation in advanced educational and academic programmes. What our students have achieved reflects the results of this approach and demonstrates the ability of national talent to progress from local excellence to an active presence and strong competitiveness on the international stage.”
Al Qatami continued: “We congratulate our students on these outstanding achievements and commend the efforts of their families, schools, coaches and supervisors who contributed to preparing and supporting them. Hamdan Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Foundation for Medical and Educational Sciences will continue to invest in national talent and provide high-quality programmes and opportunities that enable students to develop their scientific, academic and practical capabilities and strengthen their participation in science, technology and innovation, contributing to the development of a generation capable of shaping a future founded on knowledge and excellence.”
The parents of the winning students and their school principals also participated in the recognition ceremony, in appreciation of their role in supporting the students’ educational and academic journeys and helping provide an environment that enabled them to achieve these advanced results.
These achievements form part of the Foundation’s wider efforts to identify and nurture gifted students and connect talent development programmes with high-quality opportunities for learning and competition locally and internationally. Through these efforts, the Foundation seeks to strengthen students’ scientific, research and creative capabilities and support their participation in future-focused scientific, technological and academic fields.
