**fll E-mail Blast** 10/30/03

[Rich Wong]

**FLL E-MAIL BLAST** 10/30/03
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October 30, 2003


Postponing the FIRST LEGO League World Festival.

In the last couple of weeks we have made a thorough analysis of the opportunity to host a FIRST LEGO League (FLL) World Festival in April 2004. With the current global economic situation, we were unable to obtain the necessary external funding. Given the current funds available, regretfully we have made the decision to postpone in 2004.

We remain very committed to host a FLL World Festival and we believe that postponing will give us the time to get the funding in place for a World Festival in 2005

Despite the current economic situation FLL has achieved significant milestones during this 2003 MISSION MARS Challenge season. We welcomed five new countries – China, Korea, Brazil, Austria and Holland. And, we have experienced a 53% growth in teams worldwide compared to last year. This translates to approximately 4,600 teams and more than 40,000 children. A lot for everyone to be proud of!


The FIRST organization is considering hosting a FLL US National Invitational Tournament in April 2004 in Atlanta, Georgia USA in conjunction with their FIRST Robotics Competition for high school students. When plans are finalized, you will be contacted with the guidelines for potential participation.

We want to thank our World Festival Planning Committee members for volunteering their time and expertise to the planning of the event. Special thanks to Per-Arild Konradsen, Scandinavia, Marc Couture, Wisconsin, USA, Dan Maggio, Michigan, USA, Fred Rose, Minnesota, USA, Kathy Wiesner, Illinois, USA,

We would like to wish you all the very best as we enter the tournament season. FLL is very fortunate to have such a strong and committed volunteer network. Thank you for all the time and efforts you have made to bring FLL to your country.



Best regards

Anna Maenhout
FIRST

Soren Lund
LEGO Company