The 2023 Season of the FIRST Robotics Competition kicks off on January 7th, 2023.
The 2023 FRC season "officially” begins on January 7th with 114 Kickoff events across the United States and in Australia, Canada, China, Israel, Mexico, and Turkey. These events not only announce the Game Challenge for the new season, but also provided teams with the opportunity to gather and compare notes, exchange ideas, make friends, find mentoring teams, learn the game, pick up their Kit of Parts and get geared up for the exciting competition season. In addition, several of the Kickoff Events host workshops on such topics as LabView, Game Strategy, fundraising, etc., enabling students, mentors and coaches alike to learn new skills or increase their proficiency.
In Illinois, we host three main kickoff events. These various events are hosted throughout the state and can be selected through your FIRST dashboard. Because of COVID-19, these events may not be open to the public as they may have been in past years. Please contact the event hosts for more details
Aviation Institute of Mantinence, Chicago
10 a.m.- 4:00 p.m. (CST)
The 2022 Chicago FIRST Robotics Competition Kickoff will be held at a new venue this year, the Aviation Institute of Mantinence (AIM) at 3711 S Ashland Ave, Chicago, IL 60609. Doors will open at 10 AM with speakers at 10:30. Teams will be able to use classrooms in the building until 4PM that day if you wish. For attending teams, please see your emails for more information.
For more information on the Chicago Kickoff Event, contact Devyn Keeney at dkeeney@firstillinoisrobotics.org
Bradley University, Peoria
9:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m. (CST)
Hosted by the Bradley University College of Engineering and Technology and sponsored by Caterpillar Inc. Parking is available in the adjacent deck. Bradley University will host a compressed Kickoff this year, with video and kit distribution only.
For more information on the Peoria Kickoff Event, contact Jreyer@bradley.edu
Oswego East Highschool, Oswego, IL
8:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m. (CST)
Hosted by FRC team 2338 - Gear It Forward, it will be held at Oswego East Highschool located at 1525 Harvey Rd., Oswego , IL 60543 USA. More info can be found on their site Oswego Kickoff Event
For more information on the Oswego Kickoff Event, contact Holly Twardowski at hollyjtwa@gmail.com
Teams, if you are planning on attending Kickoff events, remember that you must register in TIMS for that Kickoff Event. For those of you who are unable to attend a Kickoff Event, or are hosting a Team Kickoff Party, FIRST normally provides an online broadcast. Please see the FIRST website for details.