Sam O'Neill has been named the next Autosport Engineer of the Future after being judged by a panel of experts to be the next rising star in his field.
As a result, Sam will join the Williams Formula One team on a two-year placement in an accelerated development programme. Once there he will be mentored by senior engineers and rotate through various areas of Williams before finding his specialism.
During the placement, Sam will also get the unique opportunity to work in the team's race operations division and gain experience at a grand prix.
โAt Williams, we're really looking to the future and we're looking to the future generation to take over and lead our engineering expertise,โ said Pat Symonds, Chief Technical Officer at Williams. โThis award finds those leaders. All our candidates really gave us a tough time making a decision.โ
โBut Sam took it a little bit further and we were very impressed with his analytical skills and academic record, and we think he is an engineer of the future. This is just the start of the process. Sam will come and join us in August and, for two years, we will put him through his paces. He will see all the different areas of the company and decide which he would like to settle in. This is part of the training for a future leader.โ