School wins Gladiators gadget competition

Six boys in Year Five and Six won the contest

An East Sussex school has won a competition linked to the popular TV series Gladiators.

Six pupils at Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Primary in Rottingdean were selected out of hundreds of primary schools across the UK in a contest to design a fitness gadget for the show.

Gladiators is a BBC One series where people compete against elite athletes in what the programme says is the "ultimate test of speed and strength".

"I can't believe our gadget is the winner," said Senen, a Year Five pupil from the winning group.

'Gladiators have been inspiring'

The pupils, who belong to a coding club organised by their school caretaker Bob, designed a micro:bit gadget that Senen said helped Gladiators with their "physical strength in some of their challenges".

Their gadget works by measuring "the force of a hit", explained Arthur, a Year Six winner.

Eli, another winning pupil, said: "We couldn't have won this competition without everyone at our fantastic school."

The school was visited by two Gladiators from the show, Dynamite and Phantom.

The school's headteacher said students had the "best day"

"Nothing ever this exciting happens in our village and the students have had the best day," said headteacher Anita Philbrook. "Having the Gladiators in our school has been so inspiring."

"I'm so proud of our boys," she added.

The micro:bit, designed by the BBC, was initially set up to help children across the UK with their coding skills.

It has been offered to schools across the country since its launch in 2015.

Watch Gladiators on BBC iPlayer here.