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Innoptus Solar Team Secures 3rd Place at the World Solar Car Championship After a Thrilling Race
Adelaide, Thursday 28 August 2025 – After five intense days and more than 3,021 kilometers across the Australian Outback, the Innoptus Solar Team proudly claimed a spot on the podium at the Bridgestone World Solar Challenge 2025, finishing in 3rd place.
A Remarkable Comeback
Starting all the way from 16th position after a difficult qualifying round, the KU Leuven students fought their way up through the rankings, even reaching second place during the race. A flat tire and unpredictable weather conditions, however, forced them to adjust their strategy. This morning, an additional charging stop gave the team from Twente the opportunity to overtake.
“We started in second position, but we decided to charge a little bit more this morning because there was still some sunshine there compared to here at the finish in Adelaide. As a consequence, Twente was able to overtake us and so we finished the day in third position.”
-Aurélien Soenen (24, Tervuren), Electromechanical Engineer at the Innoptus Solar Team
Weather as the Biggest Challenge
Unlike previous editions, the weather played a decisive role in this year’s race. Frequent rain showers and strong winds made the challenge even tougher and forced the teams to adapt constantly.
“This year, there was an extra difficulty compared to previous years: the weather. It changed much more often because we are in the Australian winter. So, we had much more rain, much more wind, and these were additional challenges we had to fight as well.”
-Aurélien Soenen (24, Tervuren), Electromechanical Engineer at the Innoptus Solar Team
A World-Class Battle
After two consecutive world championship victories, the Belgian team could not extend their winning streak this time, but they once again proved they belong among the very best. The top three teams finished within just half an hour of each other, an unprecedented result in the history of the competition.
“We started the competition in 16th place after a rather disappointing qualification, but we managed to climb back up to third place and even second during the race. We were really neck-and-neck with the top two teams, Twente and Brunel. It really shows that we were able to fight back, that we were there, that we were so close. It just wasn’t meant to be with all the conditions we had.”
Mathilde Blanc (23, Nivelles), Public Relations at the Innoptus Solar Team
“We are super happy with the result we were able to achieve.
With a third place we are very satisfied. It was an incredibly tough and challenging competition. We gave everything we could, and so did the car.”
-Mathilde Blanc (23, Nivelles), Public Relations at the Innoptus Solar Team
Bridgestone World Solar Challenge
Held every two years, the race takes teams from around the world on a 3,021 km journey from Darwin to Adelaide, across the harsh Australian Outback. It is widely regarded as the unofficial world championship for solar-powered vehicles.
With this podium finish, the Innoptus Solar Team once again confirms its place among the world’s elite, showcasing Belgian engineering excellence at one of the most prestigious student engineering competitions worldwide.
Original blog source : Innoptus Solar Team