India's Team Averera Wins The First Shell Eco-Marathon Virtual League Championship

The first-ever Shell Eco-marathon Virtual League concluded with India's Team Averera winning the championship. The team from the Indian Institute of Technology BHU garnered 1498 points throughout the 2021 season beating 139 teams to the title. Coming in second was Team Green Team Twente from the University of Twente, the Netherlands with 1421 points. In third place was another Indian team with Team DTU Supermileage from Delhi Technological University securing 1296 points.

Speaking about the coveted victory, Sweekar Banthiya, Team Manager, Team Averera, said, "We are thrilled to have been named champions at the Shell Eco-marathon virtual global league. Working through the pandemic was quite an exceptional challenge. We had to leave all the physical work on the vehicle, wrap up and head to our respective homes. But we completely restructured our plans to continue work remotely. As a team, it was the innovation, persistence and passion that drove us to victory. And this acknowledgement is motivation to do even better."

The Shell Eco-Marathon went virtual for the first time

The Shell Eco-Marathon Virtual League required the teams to acquire points across five different challenges. This included the off-track awards, the new Autonomous Programming Competition, each counting towards the team standings in the global ranking. The event went completely virtual for the first time this season but the students adapted quickly to the new format. The second bonus challenge introduced this year was Road to 2050 where teams had to capture what mobility should look like in the future in a 30-second ad.

In this challenge, Team ETA from Somaiya Vidyavihar University won first place for Asia Pac and the Middle East. The team depicted a futuristic vehicle that showcased a range of possible mobility solutions and ideas. Team Sadewa from Universitas Indonesia, and De La Salle University Eco Car Team, from De La Salle University, Philippines, garnered second and third place.

The final challenge was the Virtual Technical Inspections, where teams demonstrated their vehicle's compliance to a selection of rigorous safety and technical rules. Indian teams took top prizes across Asia Pac and the Middle East with Team ETA from Somaiya Vidyavihar University winning the Prototype category and Team AVERERA from Indian Institute of Technology BHU winning the Urban Concept category. Both teams impressed the judges not only with their well-designed vehicles and effective use of various equipment, scales and rulers but also by making the technical content explanation interesting for a broader, non-technical audience.

The Shell Eco-Marathon 2021 Virtual Programme received submissions from 139 teams across 20 Asia Pacific and Middle East countries, with the pan-region receiving the most submissions in three of the five virtual competitions - Pitch the Future, Off-track Awards, and Road to 2050.