Worthington sophomore becomes world champion at All-American Soap Box Derby

Talk about a photo finish — Eleni Fischer didn’t know she was world champion in the All-American Soap Box Derby in Akron recently until the light went on in her lane.

But the race was notable for more than just its neck-and-neck ending.

Eleni, 14, became the first winner in the superstock division from the Columbus area — ever.

In her third year of racing, the Worthington resident beat out 71 other racers from all over the United States on July 23.

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A rising sophomore at Thomas Worthington High School and Linworth Experiential School, Eleni said she is excited to have won and that her hard work paid off.

"It's just cool, like you work so hard for all year and you don't expect — we always think, 'Oh, I'd love to win,' but then you actually win," Eleni said. "That's so cool."

At the Akron race, she went down the hill four times, using gravity and physics to her advantage. She finished her last heat in 28.384 seconds, barely ahead of second place.

Soap Box Derby racing uses cars with only braking and steering mechanisms to go down a hill. The racer with the fastest times is declared a winner.

Tom Thome, Eleni's mentor since 2021, said he met her at a local Soap Box Derby race in Columbus and took her under his wing the following year. Under his tutelage, she won the local stock division — the lowest division, decided by a competitor’s age — and advanced to the All-American Derby last year, finishing fifth in the division.

Thome, 71, of Canal Winchester started racing at age 13 and became a mentor in 1990. He said the highest he placed in his races was second.

Thome said Eleni was very involved in building her car for the superstock division, which is typically for competitors aged 14-17. Eleni said she built her car from a kit that cost about $500.

“A lot of kids kind of expect the parent to do all of it, and that’s not what it’s about," Thome said. "It’s about the child-parent relationship and teaching her mechanical skills and mathematics skills.”

Racers cannot increase the speed of the car, instead steering and staying as low as possible to allow gravity to do its work, Eleni said. The superstock car must weigh 240 pounds with the racer inside, so the car is fitted with weights to meet this requirement.

Eleni received the steel for the weights free from Stargate Metals, after an employee learned she needed it for her Soap Box Derby. It would have cost around $400, said Eric Fischer, Eleni’s father.

Her dad said that each of the three cars in the final race were well-constructed.

"In the final three, you know, those are the perfect cars, and no one was doing anything wrong," he said. "It came down to the driving, is what everyone says, so whatever she does, it's working."

Eleni said she’d like to take her love for the sport and STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) further and major in engineering and minor in architecture when she goes to college.

She will receive a scholarship for winning the race, although its exact amount is not yet determined, according to Bill Forquer, webmaster of the Columbus Soap Box Derby.

Forquer said Eleni was a favorite going into the Akron race, and her ability to adjust the steering mechanism only once going down the hill — which slows a racer down significantly — helped her clinch the win.

“When she does make a correction, to have one correction may last her the whole race,” Forquer said. “Most kids are correcting three, four or five times on the way down. So it’s a big difference.”

Success in a Soap Box Derby race is about focusing on the competition and staying low in the car, Eleni said.

“I guess just being able to stay focused while you’re racing and not getting distracted or letting the fact that you have to go to the bathroom and you’re hungry, you’re tired, you’re sweaty, distract you from racing,” she said.

Eleni’s winning car is now in the All-American Soap Box Derby Hall of Fame in Akron, along with the other winners since the start of the sport in 1934.

Forquer said while many racers come from avid racing families, but this was not the case for Eleni.

“Her performance is pretty great, just walking out saying, ‘Yeah, I like this; I’m going to give it a try,’ and she had that kind of success,” Forquer said.

Anyone ages 7-19 can try their hand at Soap Box Derby racing on Derby Hill at Big Run Park on Clime Road in Columbus on Sept. 10 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Soap Box Derby cars will be available on site. More information is available at columbus.soapboxderby.org.

JOrozco@dispatch.com

@JessicaCOrozco

This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: First Columbus-area champion at All-American Soap Box Derby named