Honda's Asimo in Windsor Castle 'Dragon's Den' Showdown

WINDSOR, ENGLAND - December 16, 2009: ASIMO made a special visit to historic Windsor Castle to congratulate the nine finalists of ‘Reaching for Gold’, a competition for young people in the South East of England.

The annual competition, sponsored by Honda, is aimed at encouraging groups of young people to develop innovative ideas that can make a practical difference to society. It is designed for teams of up to ten 14-19 year olds, and is particularly targeted at those living or working with a disadvantage or disability.

ASIMO congratulated each of the nine groups of finalists individually and performed a full showcase of its abilities to the gathered supporters and spectators in The Vicar’s Hall, a formal state room located in the castle’s grounds.

Windsor Castle, located in the Royal Borough of Berkshire, is the largest inhabited castle in the world and, dating back to the time of William the Conqueror, is the oldest in continuous occupation.

The winning team called ‘Young Pioneers’, a group of 6 teenagers from Battle in East Sussex, received a cash prize of £5000 to help them develop their winning idea further.

Young Pioneers was the brainchild of Luke Lancaster, 14 from Battle in East Sussex, their idea was to encourage disadvantaged youngsters to take part in doing something positive for their communities through a 5 day course developed by the team.

The overall competition ‘Reaching for Gold’ organised by SEEDA (South East Economic Development Agency) attracted more than 100 groups of young people from across the South East of England who put forward ideas to benefit people who are disadvantaged by the area they live in, their circumstances or by disability. The 9 finalist groups took part in a day long Dragon’s Den event held at the Vicar’s Hall within the grounds of Windsor Castle.