Singapore Teen Wins Gold, Gains Global Insight at Jamaica Robotics Camp – Jamaica Information Service

Nineteen year old Esben Mong travelled more than 11,000 miles from Singapore to take part in the WorldSkills Jamaica and Studica Robotics Invitational Training Camp, held at Cardiff Hotel and Spa in Runaway Bay, St. Ann, from June 8 to 12.

By the end of the week, he and teammate Ray Chu captured gold in the autonomous mobile robotics friendly competition.

For Esben, the greatest reward was not standing atop the leaderboard, but the chance to sharpen his skills, learn from competitors across countries, and deepen his understanding of the field he loves.

“I found it very meaningful because this camp not only taught us for our trade specifically. It taught us more about hardware, and it also taught us about software,” he told JIS News in an interview, following the closing ceremony on June 12.

Throughout the camp, participants were immersed in both the hands on and programming aspects of robotics.

Training sessions introduced them to Robot Operating Systems (ROS), while hands on exercises offered valuable insight into the equipment and challenges they may face at the upcoming WorldSkills competition in Shanghai, People’s Republic of China, this September.

When asked about the highlight of the camp, Esben shared that he was most fascinated by the skill of teams from other countries in hardware building, as well as the speed with which they constructed robots.

“I’m really thoroughly amazed about their memory as well as how they are really good at coding software,” he added.

Esben noted that these observations highlight the need to become equally proficient in both hardware construction and software development.

Despite earning the gold medal, Esben was reluctant to place too much emphasis on the result, noting that robotics is a discipline where success often hinges on factors beyond a competitor’s control.

“It was just a bit of luck. I feel that in robotics, anything and everything could happen. So, with that being said, it means that because of the environment or maybe at that point in time, your robot just couldn’t detect something. It’s really this volatile aspect in this competition that makes robotics fun,” he told JIS News.

That unpredictability became evident in the challenges his team encountered while working with Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) scanning technology.

Beyond the training floor, Esben expressed gratitude for the chance to visit Jamaica for the first time.

“I really enjoyed the food as well as the hospitality. I really liked how people here are really friendly… they’re very nice. I was really intrigued by the Jamaican culture. I got to watch a local dance… it was really nice to see,” he shared.