Odyssey of the Mind World Finals

Problem 1: The OM-Mazing Race
Shanghai Pudong Youth Performance Club Team A
Shanghai, China
Division II
This propulsion system used extreme ingenuity, technical mastery, and beyond-the-box creativity.
Twenty-six cola bottles turned into twenty-six carefully calibrated pressure chambers that worked with electromagnetic valves in their engineered PVC pipe framework. The vehicle WALKS, striding forward on timed bursts of air as a celestial creature.
The system demonstrates understanding of fluid dynamics, pressure regulation, and electronic synchronization.
This is innovation at its most inspired – using materials that most would overlook and turning it into a propulsion system that is as daring as it is effective.

Fundacja WYOBRAZ SOBIE
Swakina, Poland
Division III
This team used incredible problem solving skills and creativity to produce a unique and novel solution to the problem. They welded together wallpaper rollers to create their own omnidirectional wheel system that allows their vehicle to move in any direction and turn on a dime.
They not only created these wheels but also made their own custom gearboxes for each wheel enabling the system to be operated using only one motor. The ability of the vehicle to be operated by only one motor is an incredible feat of engineering.
This team shows creativity and risk taking that is the embodiment of the Ranatra Fusca award.

Problem 2: Mech-Animal Sidekick
West University ES Team A
Houston, Texas
Division I
Want a surprising scene change? The entire stage, set, and actors disappeared, swallowed by a gray Mecha-Whale.
When the next scene was revealed, the background had changed from flat to curving over the actors’ heads, showing they were inside the whale. There were white whale bones supporting the roof of the mouth and green mucus lining the sides. “Floating” eyes, nose, and lips were manipulated by four team members reusing components from earlier scenes.
Their scene change and reveal left our eyes popping and our jaws dropped.

 Oradell Public School
Oradell, NJ
Division II
What do a flea, a bear, a homemade electric piano, a cathedral, and a train have in common with a circus? Pure magic—thanks to this extraordinary team.
Using only recycled materials including cardboard, milk cartons, and paper towel tubes, they built a stunning, 3D Trans-Siberian-style train with a plush red velvet interior. Alongside it towered an 8-foot Russian Orthodox cathedral with colorful spires, adding to the vibrant Russian circus theme.
One member transformed into a circus tent, revealing performers inside—until a surprise twist turned the entire scene into a flea circus! Even more impressively, the team created a functioning “flea piano,” where each flea triggered a unique sound woven into the show’s narrative.