During the May Day holiday, people spent their vacations in diverse ways—some took it easy and relaxed, while others were constantly on the move.
At 6:30 a.m. on May 1st, as dawn broke over Siming College of the Eastern Institute of Technology, Ningbo (EIT), a 10-member team assembled bright and early. Carrying three mysterious black metal cases, they headed straight for the airport.
What lay inside those cases? Three robots with round heads and large eyes. Despite their endearing appearance, these robots are formidable athletes when they step onto the soccer field.
Since late March of this year, the "EI Kick" robot soccer team has devoted itself tirelessly to preparing these three little iron men to compete from EIT's laboratories to the pitch at the Beijing International Convention Center. The team name "EI Kick" is a clever pun on the EIT abbreviation, coined by the creative team members.
Through daily hands-on training and relentless post-session reviews and analyses, they ultimately secured their qualification for the RoboCup China Open 2026. What makes this achievement even more remarkable is that this newly formed first-year team battled their way through intense competition to secure a top six national ranking.
Group photo of "EI Kick" Team
The Only Team Composed Exclusively of Freshmen
On the flight from Ningbo to Beijing, Zhenwei Zhao, team leader of "EI Kick" and a undergraduate student at EIT, stared out the window at the clouds, deep in thought. This was his first trip to the capital, yet anxiety outweighed his excitement.
"I would love to visit Tian’anmen Square, the Great Wall, and the Temple of Heaven while in Beijing, but given our tight schedule and demanding tasks this time, I'm afraid there won't be an opportunity," Zhenwei Zhao said. "This is the first time we are representing EIT in a national off-campus competition, and we are the only participating team made up entirely of freshmen. As young people, we naturally want to win."
For a fledgling team, setbacks are not merely challenges but also invaluable lessons that drive growth.
In the early stages of the "EI Kick" team's formation, connectivity issues between the robots and the official referee system emerged as a pressing technical challenge that demanded immediate resolution.
Zhenwei Zhao (left) and teammate Yiqing Huang training in the EIT Robotics Laboratory
Wenjin Zhang, Zhenwei Zhao's close collaborator and a skilled programmer, serves as the team's lead robotic algorithm specialist. During training, Wenjin Zhang and his teammates conducted extensive algorithmic research and developed several targeted troubleshooting lists.
As team leader, Zhenwei Zhao took the initiative to serve as the central point of contact for all team communications. He reached out to the robot's original manufacturer and provided comprehensive feedback on the issues encountered by team members during training. Additionally, Professor Gang Xu, Foreign Member of the Engineering Academy of Japan and Chair Professor in the College of Information Science and Technology at EIT, along with the research teams of Assistant Professors Wei Zhang and Wentao Zhu, provided guidance on optimal robot positioning on the soccer field.
"On our team, we have members who oversee overall strategy, others who specialize in algorithm development, and still others who handle logistics support with unwavering dedication," said Yuxuan Liang, member of the "EI Kick" team. "Everyone works together with a shared purpose, believing in the power of collective effort."
This strong sense of cohesion provided the foundation for the team to excel on the national competition stage.
A Heart-Stopping Moment During Competition
The RoboCup China Open 2026 concluded on May 4th. In the group photograph of all participants in the robot soccer event, EIT stood out distinctly.
Group photo from the RoboCup China Open 2026
Over the three days of intense competition, "EI Kick" faced a series of matches against Wuhan University's "WHUAI-Invic" team, Tsinghua University's "THMOS" team, and Chongqing University's "Mecha Cyclone" team. Their tournament journey saw them lose their opening match, secure a convincing victory in the second round, and suffer a narrow defeat in the final round. Ultimately, "EI Kick" concluded their Beijing campaign with a top six national finish. When recounting the competition experience, every team member's eyes lit up with excitement.
"EI Kick" team members controlling the robot from the sideline
Fei Han, the faculty advisor of EI Kick, recalled: "At the beginning of the tournament, a referee system version malfunction pushed us to the brink of having to withdraw. Fortunately, the team kept their composure and held their ground in the crisis." After forfeiting their first-round match against Wuhan University, team members including Wenjin Zhang immediately returned to their hotel and performed an emergency update and fix on the robots' connectivity system.
Following this series of heart-stounding episodes, "EI Kick" bounced back in the second round and defeated a formidable opponent.
That evening, team member Yiyang Gong shared competition photos on his WeChat Moments, along with a stunning shot of the sunset he encountered after the match, expressing the joy in his heart. "On such a high-profile stage, facing such difficult circumstances, any victory is enough to make you emotional. For us, a group of first-year students, this is an immense encouragement!" said Yiyang Gong.
Screenshot of Yiyang Gong's WeChat Moments
Chuanyi Zhong, another faculty advisor of "EI Kick", commented: "In short, regardless of the outcome, every student gained valuable experience from the competition and made like-minded friends from across the country. As long as we encounter something wonderful, every trip and every competition become meaningful."
Integrating AI into Curriculum and Research
As one of China's largest and most influential robotics events, the RoboCup China Open 2026 encompasses multiple categories including soccer robots, service robots, and industrial robots.
"EI Kick" team leader Zhenwei Zhao recalled that when he saw a wide array of robots taking the stage one after another, a spark of passion ignited within him.
"For me, AI technology can create‘a new form of intelligent life’in the future, and that is the fundamental reason I am fascinated by it," he said. He added that in his next phase at EIT, he plans to choose artificial intelligence as his main field of study.
Since its founding, EIT has been committed to building a new educational ecosystem that integrates science and education as well as industry and academia, embedding national strategies into the entire talent cultivation process and exploring an innovative path for cultivating top-tier talent that "grows through integration."
In its hands-on teaching, EIT attempts to integrate real-world AI research scenarios into its curriculum and research training, allowing students to "learn by doing" — integrating theoretical knowledge with practical skills while solving complex engineering problems.
Professor Jie Liang, Chair Professor of the College of Information Science and Technology at EIT and Fellow of the Canadian Academy of Engineering (fifth from right), and Assistant Professor Wei Zhang (second from left) guide students in operating a robotic dog
"Upon first arriving on campus, EIT gave us the opportunity to enter the lab, which gave me a more intuitive and profound understanding of AI and related fields," said "EI Kick" team member Wenjin Zhang.
"Artificial intelligence is a mainstream direction of future technology, and it is also a key focus of EIT's disciplinary layout and talent cultivation. I hope that students can take this opportunity to feel the pulse of cutting-edge technology, treating every optimized line of code, every honed instance of team collaboration, and every challenge as a steppingstone for growth. This is also the foundation from which EIT students will step into the future," said Professor Dongxiao Zhang, Executive Vice President and Provost of EIT.
"This is the first off-campus competition for EIT's inaugural undergraduate cohort. As a team of first-year students, they have made history. The final result is not the most important takeaway; what matters is that they demonstrated the spirit and courage of EIT's inaugural undergraduate class — the audacity to fight and forge ahead," said Professor Zhongchao Tan, Assistant President and Director of Academic Affairs of EIT.
Professor Dongxiao Zhang, Executive Vice President and Provost of EIT (left), and Professor Zhongchao Tan, Vice Provost and Director of Academic Affairs (right), providing guidance to EI Kick team members during competition preparation
