Northern Ireland's further education students have delivered a
world-class performance on the global stage, bringing home a gold
medal, bronze medal and five medals for excellence from
WorldSkills in Shanghai.
The competitors from Southern Regional College, South West
College and Riverpark Training showcased their skills against
some of the best young talent from across the world at the
prestigious international competition, commonly known as the
Skills Olympics'.
Ruth , from Banbridge, was crowned world
champion in Chemical Laboratory Technology, winning gold. Ruth
works at Almac and attends Southern Regional College.
Oisin McKerr, from Lurgan, secured bronze in Car Painting. Oisin
works for Porters Body Shop and attends Southern Regional
College.
Medals for excellence, recognising world-class standards, were
also awarded to:
- Andrew McCann, from Aughnacloy, in Plumbing & Heating.
Andrew works for AMC Plumbing & Heating and attends South
West College.
- Joe Wilton, from Ballymena, in Autobody Repair. Joe works for
SDM Paintwork and attends Riverpark Training.
- Jonathan Gough, from Waringstown, in Electrical Installation.
Jonathan is self-employed and attends Southern Regional College.
- Caolan McCartan, from Newry, and Patrick Sheerin, who works
for AJ Power and is from Portadown, in Industry 4.0. Both attend
Southern Regional College.
Economy Minister Dr , who met some of the
competitors at Stormont before they travelled to Shanghai, hailed
their outstanding success. She said: What an incredible
achievement. Our competitors have taken on the very best in the
world and shown that we have the talent and skills to compete and
win on the global stage.
To bring home gold, bronze and five medals for excellence is an
outstanding result and every one of our competitors should be
immensely proud.
Their success also speaks volumes about the quality of our
further education colleges, training providers and employers.
Developing world-class skills is vital to creating good jobs,
improving productivity and building a stronger economy, and these
young people are fantastic ambassadors for what the north has to
offer.
Notes to editors:
- The students were competing at WorldSkills 2026 as part of
Team UK. They competed against 1,400 of their
peers from more than 70 nations.
