Students in pole position for prestigious Esports racing competition
Students at the University of Chichester have qualified to compete in a national Formula 1 simulator race organised by British F1 team Williams.
The team of three students will be racing against other colleges and universities around the country in the Student Racing League (SRL) LAN (Local Area Network) event on 29 April at Williams F1 Conference Centre in Wantage, Oxfordshire.
First-year students Bertie Wellesley, William White and Lewis George have been competing throughout the academic year in F1 sim racing, securing season points to qualify for the event. The league structure of the competition emulates the professional F1 season, with the participants racing on the same virtual courses as the pro racers every week.
At Williams F1, the students will compete against nine other colleges/universities, sitting side-by-side in the state-of-the-art Williams experience centre in the final race of the SRL season. There will also be a careers talk and museum tour after the race. The whole event will be livestreamed on the Williams Esports twitch page (www.twitch.tv/williamsesports).
Lee Cumbers, Lecturer in Esports at the University of Chichester said: “Bertie, Lewis and Will have shown teamwork and dedication to qualify for this LAN event. Getting to promote their skillsets in-person, as well as learn about potential career pathways in the World of Motorsport, is a fantastic opportunity for these first-year students.”
Competitor and student William White said: “To qualify for the LAN finals at Williams HQ is really exciting as it’s a testament to the hard work that the three of us put in to qualify in the first place, but it’s also a special opportunity to visit the headquarters of one of the most successful Formula 1 teams ever and to meet and connect with a lot of people within the industry. We’ll definitely be looking to do ourselves justice for the work and practice hours we’ve put in to get to this point.”
Chichester was the first university in the country to enter the SRL, and this is the second year they will compete in it.
For more information about Esports and other creative industries courses at the University of Chichester, go to www.chi.ac.uk/creative-industries.
