Round 1 of GT Academy, the ground-breaking competition that will give one Gran Turismo 5 player the opportunity of a lifetime to become a professional race car driver, closed on Sunday January with nearly 55,000 participants total. Consisting of three time trial events designed to test players' driving skills and mastery of the tracks using Nissan vehicles, Round 1 was the first step in a series of online race challenges designed to discover the 16 best players in the country who will go on to compete head-to-head to become the GT Academy champion.

Round 1 of GT Academy was from held December 20 to January 23, with players split into four US regions. The top 128 players per region will now move on to Round 2, which begins Monday January 31, 2011, at 9 AM EST. Each of the 128 players per region will also receive a voucher for a downloadable version of Gran Turismo for the PlayStation Portable. At the end of Round 2, the top 16 players per region will move on to Round 3, as well as receive a Gran Turismo 5 Collector's Edition. And at the end of Round 3, the top eight eight players per region will get to move on to the GT Academy National Finals to compete live head-to-head for a spot in the GT Academy boot camp where one person will emerge as the GT Academy winner and train to become a professional race car driver.

Congratulations to the winners of Round 1, the 512 players who advanced ahead of nearly 55,000 other GT Academy entrants.