Ukrainian student wins gold at World Championships for Space Models in US

Denys Mozok, a student of the National Aviation University, took first place in the S4A class — glider models with an accelerator for the duration of the flight.

The Solomiansky District State Administration announced that the Ukrainian rocketry team impressed the world community with its skills and achievements at the recent championship, which took place in Austin, Texas, USA, from July 2 to 7, Rubryka reports.

Such competitions have been held every two years since 1972. According to the official report, Ukrainian rocket modelers won 14 awards, 6 of which were gold medals.

This year's tournament was particularly challenging for the team, as Ukrainian athletes faced challenges associated with difficult training conditions. As a result of martial law and restrictions on flights in Ukraine, rocket modelers were deprived of the opportunity to practice launching rockets. 

The competition organizers introduced new engine requirements only six months before the start, requiring the athletes to change their models immediately without the possibility of accurate tests before the championship. Despite all these difficulties, the Ukrainian team demonstrated a significant result.

The Ukrainian junior national team took 2nd place in the all-team unofficial standings. Among the champions is Denys Mozok, a student of the National Aviation University of the LV-201 ACF group, who took 2nd place in the team competition among juniors in the S4A class — glider models with an accelerator for the duration of the flight.

The team consists of Denys Mozok (Shostka), Rodion Shtruzman (Dnipro), Sofia Fisun (Dnipro), and Mykhailo Dubrovnyi (Dnipro).

In the individual competition, the 1st place in the S4A class was taken by Denys with models of gliders with an accelerator for the duration of the flight.

Model rocketry is a technical type of competition in which participants participate in the development, launch, and control of model rockets and gliders. Competitions take place in different classes, where athletes compete for flight height or flight duration, as well as for matching the appearance of the model to the original rocket.

As Rubryka reported, Yan Starodubets from the Kyiv Minor Academy of Sciences was nominated for the title of the best student in the world. Yan Starodubets is a graduate of the 11th grade of the Educational institution "European Collegium" and a pupil of the chemistry section of the chemistry and biology department of the Kyiv National Academy of Sciences. He was ranked among the TOP 50 students in the world by the Global Student Prize (an international student award for the world's best student inventors), the winner of which will receive $100,000.

Rubryka also reported that Ukrainian Minor Academy of Sciences students won 35 awards at the GENIUS Olympiad in the United States.