The high-octane motorsport that is Formula 1 (F1) gained another avid fan in Glen Coutinho, 17, when he started watching the races online during the pandemic.
“It was seeing my favourite F1 driver, Lewis Hamilton, winning quite a bit. I was also fascinated by how these cars could go so fast,” Glen said.
As an International Baccalaureate (IB) student at XCL World Academy, Glen aspires to become an engineer. He came one step closer to realising his passion when he represented his school and Singapore at the STEM Racing (formerly known as F1 in Schools) World Finals this year.
STEM Racing is an annual international competition in which student teams from over 30 countries design, build, and race miniature F1 model cars, made of polyurethane blocks and 3D-printed parts, powered by carbon dioxide cartridges.
The overall score is out of 1,000 points, but STEM Racing has yet to release the official results. A total of 83 teams competed in the finals of the international competition, including three from Singapore. The other two Singapore teams were from the Tanglin Trust School and the Global Indian International School.
The teams were graded holistically based on overall car speed, track time, and their portfolios in project management, enterprise, and engineering. These criteria allowed assessors to understand how the team constructed the car, how they attained their sponsorships, and how well they worked together as a unit.
The final round of the 2025 competition took place in Singapore, at the Resorts World Sentosa from Sept 27 to Oct 2. “It’s a test of reaction, similar to F1. There will be a set of five red lights, and once they all go off, you press the (launch) button. From there, your car launches into a drag race to the finish line,” Glen explained.
Glen’s team built two model cars, which were used to race against three other teams at the same time. Racing eight times on a 20-metre drag strip across four race sessions allowed him and his five other teammates to each get a chance to press the button.
Supported by F1, the competition aims to inspire students aged 9 to 19 to explore engineering, design, enterprise, and teamwork. Each team comprises three to six students and functions like a mini F1 squad, each taking on real-world roles such as team principal, head engineer, graphic designer, and marketing lead.
After several rounds of selection interviews, Glen was offered the roles of marketing lead and secondary engineer for his school’s team – XCLerate Racing, Singapore’s 2024 National Champion Team – which he first learned about from a schoolmate who had been a member previously.
“I am in charge of marketing and partnerships, but what attracted me the most, upon further research, was the capability of how fast these miniature cars can go, sometimes up to speeds of 120 to 140 kilometres per hour. That and the opportunities to connect with large companies and meet people from different countries,” Glen said.
The team spent many after-school hours together in person and online, for about 10 months, making sure their cars were built to spec. Glen specifically practised making pitches, creating slide decks, and developing sponsorship hierarchies to secure sponsors for the team.
“We understood that some companies might be a bit sceptical to give that much money to a team of teenagers, but having the school’s backing really helped us,” Glen said. He managed to secure six sponsors for the team, with Salesforce, an American cloud-based software company, being the key sponsor.
Glen’s parents were fully supportive of his participation in the STEM Racing World Finals, tuning in to watch every race session live as it was streamed online. His mother was originally from Mangaluru but grew up in Mumbai, while his father is a native of Chennai.
The family relocated to Singapore in 2003, before he was born. As a Singapore citizen, Glen chose to pursue the IB diploma at XCL World Academy as he believes the programme, although rigorous, helps to set students up for the future.
The next step for XCLerate Racing would be the 2025 Singapore Nationals. Glen will not be returning as a team member but will mentor and guide the next group of students.
When asked if this sport is accessible to schools with lesser funds, he replied: “I believe money isn’t a limiting factor. If there’s a will, there’s a way, and if the team is willing to go the extra mile, it is plausible.”
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5 Oct 2025 19:54
