Whyalla Teens Race Hydrogen Cars at Swiss World Finals

After spending three and a half hours behind the wheel without blinking, 17-year-old Simon Coppins watched his team's first-place dreams vanish 30 minutes before the finish line.

The Whyalla high schooler and his four teammates had dominated Australia's 2025 qualifying race for the H2 Grand Prix, where competitors build hydrogen-powered RC cars and complete as many laps as possible in four hours. A simple misunderstanding about battery swaps during maintenance led to their disqualification, despite holding a commanding lead.

"We were so close to our end goal," Simon said of the moment that ended hundreds of hours of work perfecting their car.

But fortune has given them a second chance. When race organizers shifted their schedule to align with the northern hemisphere calendar, they couldn't hold new qualifiers in Australia in time. Instead, they invited several high-performing teams from 2025, including the Whyalla crew who came so close to victory.

Now the five Sunrise Christian School students are Switzerland-bound for the June 2026 World Finals. For aspiring engineer Simon, it represents two years of "blood, sweat and tears" finally paying off.

Team manager Caelan Kaminski says their strategy focuses on consistency over speed. "We don't want to be the fastest car out there, because the fastest cars always run out of fuel the quickest," he explained.

Why This Inspires

Teacher Trudi Wynn couldn't be prouder of how her students handled last year's crushing disappointment. "They were very, very gracious in the disqualification," she said. The teens spent the rest of that day thanking sponsors and apologizing for not winning, showing maturity beyond their years.

The competition serves a bigger purpose than trophies. As Whyalla's steelworks faced administration despite the city being heralded as a "Hydrogen Hub," these students are proving the town's hydrogen potential on the world stage. "It's definitely a big opportunity for all of us to prove Whyalla's worth and skills and community," Caelan said.

Wynn sees the project as the perfect tool to inspire the next generation of problem solvers. "This is why I'm a teacher," she said, explaining how her inventor father shaped her passion for getting students involved in real-world challenges.

The team now needs to raise roughly $100,000 to cover flights, accommodation, and equipment for five students and five accompanying adults, turning their redemption story into reality.