The Greenville High School Iron Lions Solar Car Team has made history on the world stage, becoming the only high school team in the world to compete in the 2025 Bridgestone World Solar Car Challenge in Australia — a grueling 1,800-mile solar-powered race across the Australian Outback that typically features elite university engineering programs.
A High School Team in a University World
Held every two years, the World Solar Car Challenge brings together the brightest engineering students from around the globe to design, build, and race solar-powered vehicles. While high school teams have occasionally entered in the past, the Iron Lions are the only high school participants in 2025, competing in the prestigious Challenger Class with their custom-built car, Aurora.
Their journey began months earlier. To meet the event’s strict deadlines, the students finished and shipped Aurora in May, nearly two months earlier than most competitors. The car spent 60 days traveling across the ocean before arriving safely in Darwin, Australia, in early August.
The team traveled from Texas to Australia on August 7, sent off in style by the Greenville community with a police escort through town. After three days of flights, a 14-hour time change, and even a traditional Australian dinner with live music, the students finally reunited with Aurora. To their relief, the car arrived in excellent condition, needing only minor adjustments before scrutineering — the rigorous technical inspections all teams must pass before racing.
Representing Greenville on a Global Stage
The Iron Lions were joined on the trip by Greenville ISD teachers Trevor and Christi McNellis, who ensured students could keep up with schoolwork while abroad. Sponsors Joel Pitts, George Kroncke, and Lucas Kiowski also traveled ahead of the group to receive the car and scout the race route.
What makes the Iron Lions’ achievement especially remarkable is the level of competition. Unlike their university counterparts, the Greenville students not only designed and built their car but even constructed their solar arrays by hand. They faced the same technical, engineering, and endurance challenges as teams from the Netherlands, Switzerland, Canada, Australia, and the University of Minnesota — and they held their own.
International teams quickly took notice. “Greenville, Texas, you should be proud of these students,” said sponsor Lucas Kiowski. “They worked diligently with only minor direction and really looked like the awesome solar car team we know they are. Other teams took notice, and our kids held their own in those conversations. It was a great boost for our students to get positive feedback from teams they’ve admired for so long.”
A Japanese team, surprised to learn that every Iron Lions member was still in high school, described their work as “extraordinary.” Students even formed friendships with competitors through Google Translate, swapping stories, advice, and team gear.
Team captains Nicholas Gonzalez and Ethan Kiowski (age 16) were interviewed live on ABC Radio Australia, with Ethan making history as the youngest driver ever in the World Solar Car Challenge. He even celebrated his 16th birthday while racing across the Outback.
Awards and Global Recognition
The Iron Lions completed the official 1,800-mile race route from Darwin to Adelaide, powered solely by sunlight. At the event’s conclusion in Victoria Square, the team proudly drove Aurora in the farewell parade before receiving global recognition.
Out of dozens of international teams, Greenville High School’s Iron Lions earned two prestigious awards:
-
The Bridgestone E8 Commitment Award – honoring their embodiment of Bridgestone’s values of empowerment and emotion. Only three teams worldwide were nominated, and the Iron Lions won.
-
The Youth Award (Gem) – presented by the international outlet Scientific Gems for outstanding achievement by young competitors.
The award presenter praised the students as “the high school team whose members have enthusiastically embraced all aspects of the event and the goals of empowerment and emotion.”
Beyond formal recognition, the Iron Lions also earned respect from their peers, exchanging shirts, hats, and gear with top university teams — a symbol of admiration rarely extended to a high school group.
Pride at Home and Abroad
For Greenville, the Iron Lions’ success is more than just trophies and headlines — it’s proof of what young people can achieve with determination, teamwork, and vision.
“These students showed the world that high schoolers from Greenville, Texas, can stand shoulder-to-shoulder with some of the best engineering students anywhere,” said a community supporter. “They’ve earned our utmost respect and admiration.”
From concept to construction, from Texas to Australia, the Greenville High School Iron Lions proved that innovation and passion know no age limit.
