11-year-old winner of Panasonic’s car design contest goes to Singapore GP

Bryan Foo Shi Sheng, 11 years old, was hand-picked by Jarno Trulli, the
Toyota-Panasonic F1 driver to win the Panasonic [I][B]Get Me to the Race[/I][/B] Car Design Contest today.

An excited Bryan submitted his model car made of recycled materials such as old newspapers, bottle caps, soft steel wire and black tape to Panasonic’s "Get Me to the Race" Car Design Competition. His entry was hand-picked by Jarno Trulli during the finals of the contest held on 23 September 2009 at Ion Orchard mall.

"I really enjoyed designing my car and thinking of different materials to use to build the car. At first, I found it difficult to find suitable recyclable materials but after a lot of thought, I decided to use old newspapers and bottle caps, because they are lightweight, durable and easily accessible. I am excited about going to F1 because I have always been interested in the sport," said Bryan.

Bryan studies in Anglo-Chinese School (Primary) and was inspired to create his design after his Primary 3 art teacher taught his class how to make paper mache.

"The shortlisted entries were all unique and very interesting. It is good to see children have such creativity especially at such a young age. To me, Bryan’s entry stood out because I liked the design and the creative use of materials," said Jarno Trulli.

The contest is part of Panasonic’s initiative to take F1 to young people in Singapore this year and to promote the spirit of experimentation. The competition was open from 7 to 21 September 2009 to all Singaporeans and residents in Singapore aged 7 to 13.

Participants were required to email three photos showing the front, side and rear views of their creations and a short description of the recyclable materials used in the construction.

"We are very happy that we have managed to reach out to young people, to pique their interest and satisfy their curiosity about F1. We hope that with this contest, not only have we got the creative juices flowing but also helped groom some future lovers of F1."

"We would like to congratulate Bryan on his win and hope he enjoys the day at the F1 Singapore Grand Prix this year," said Mr Katsumi (Karl) Takahashi, Director, Corporate Communications Group, Panasonic Asia.

[IMG]http://www.oneshift.com/showroom/uploadimages/resized-20090924231816148.jpg[/IMG]

[IMG]http://www.oneshift.com/showroom/uploadimages/resized-20090924231756512.jpg[/IMG]

[IMG]http://www.oneshift.com/showroom/uploadimages/resized-20090924231738724.jpg[/IMG]

Credits: JRC