Two graduates of New College Lanarkshire will be flying the flag for Scotland when they go for gold at the global "trade skills olympics" in China.
Mona Nawaz from Motherwell and Lewis Batchelor from East Kilbride have been selected to compete at WorldSkills Shanghai 2022 in October.
They are part of the 39-strong Team UK who will showcase their skills against the best students and apprentices representing more than 80 countries.
Mona, 23, will compete in the Digital Construction discipline. She completed both HNC and HND Computer Aided Architectural Design and Technology (CAADT) at New College Lanarkshire’s Motherwell Campus, and will soon move from her job at KEM Drawing Services in Motherwell to take up a position at Balfour Beatty.
She said: “I am ecstatic to have reached this level and be selected for Team UK. I can’t wait to get out to Shanghai and show everyone what I can do.”
Lewis will compete in the Mechanical Engineering: CAD discipline. The 22-year-old studied HNC and HND Computer Aided Draughting and Design (CADD) at the college's Hamilton and Motherwell campuses. Since completing his studies in 2019, he secured a role with the Merson Group.
“To be selected for Team UK after years of hard work is a huge achievement and so rewarding. It’s proof that if you keep going and believe in yourself you can make it," said Lewis.
“It’s great to see skill and my passion rewarded and that I get the chance to go out to Shanghai to compete against the best in the world.
“It will be very different to competing in the UK and extra pressure, but I am really looking forward to meeting competitors and experts from the other counties.”
Having triumphed in regional and national competitions, Team UK members have been training since January 2020. Preparation for international competition is normally a two-year programme, but the pandemic forced the Shanghai finals, originally scheduled for 2021, to be pushed back a year.
Professor Christopher Moore, Principal and Chief Executive of New College Lanarkshire, said: “Mona and Lewis are tremendous ambassadors for our college and our community. We are proud that their hard work, focus and dedication will be demonstrated in this prestigious competition.
“I would like to offer them both my congratulations – and wish them every success as they prepare to compete against fellow highly skilled young professionals in two exacting engineering disciplines in front of a global audience.
“I would also like to thank our staff who have continued to train all of our WorldSkills competitors for regional, national and international competitions during the very challenging circumstances of the last two years.”
Team UK is led by the WorldSkills UK organisation as part of its goal to use international best practice to raise standards in apprenticeships and technical education.
The 46 th WorldSkills event, which will take place from October 13 to 16, will see finalists vying for medals in 33 trade skills disciplines.
Three further Team UK members are from Scotland: Connor Cruden from Moray College, and Simi Federova and George Hutchison from City of Glasgow College.
WorldSkills UK Deputy CEO Ben Blackledge said: “The event is a real opportunity to raise the profile and prestige of UK skills and is a life-changing opportunity for all involved. ”
To find out more about WorldSkills UK visit: www.worldskillsuk.org
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