SOLAS and the National Apprenticeship Office Wishes the Best of Luck to Team Ireland Travelling to World Skills Competition

SOLAS/08.09.2024

SOLAS, the Further Education and Training (FET) Authority and the National Apprenticeship Office, has today (09.09.24), wished the best of luck to the 17 participants travelling to Lyon, France to compete as Team Ireland at the 2024 World Skills event this week.

The 47th annual WorldSkills competition takes place in Lyon this week and will see over 1,500 competitors from more than 71 countries and regions around the world demonstrate their skills across 62 skills areas.

The Team Ireland competitors represent the best of their peers and have been selected from skills competitions that were held in World Skills member countries and regions. The Irish team will compete in a range of areas including Industrial Mechanics, Beauty Therapy, Restaurant Service and Cloud Computing.

Speaking today, Andrew Brownlee, CEO of SOLAS said:

“On behalf of SOLAS, we wish the very best of luck to the 18 inspiring young people competing this week in the world’s biggest skills competition. WorldSkills is the Olympics for vocational, technological, and service-oriented skills. We are incredibly proud of Team Ireland and we look forward to seeing them showcase the exceptional quality of their skills and trades on this international stage.

This exciting competition gives us an important platform to recognise and promote the value of skills-based learning in Ireland, and also to celebrate the incredible achievements of Team Ireland as they represent their country at this prestigious event.”

Also speaking today, Mary Liz Trant, Director of the National Apprenticeship Office said:

“On behalf of the National Apprenticeship Office, we want to wish the best of luck to the Irish team travelling to Lyon for this exciting international event. These outstanding young people have been chosen to represent Ireland and after months of dedicated training and preparation the day is finally here for them to showcase their exceptional talents on an international stage.

By competing at this very experienced level, Team Ireland is also showcasing the range and diversity of skills careers and Apprenticeships available in Ireland today. We are now fostering a huge variety of skills, from traditional areas such as Building and Construction, to newer areas, such as Cyber and ICT, and there are so many options available for young people.

Our Irish representatives are role models and by taking part in World Skills they will inspire and encourage today’s youth to explore the multiple career pathways available now through Further Education, Apprenticeships and Higher Education”.

World Skills is so much more than a competition, it’s gives us an important vehicle to promote a skilled future in Ireland, and to showcase the innovation of further and higher education programmes in Ireland today.

Team Ireland competed for the first time in 1957 and has competed at every international competition since then winning 63 Gold medals, 53 Silver medals, 80 Bronze Medals and 174 Diplomas/Medallions of Excellence with 732 Team Ireland competitors. In 2016 Ireland Skills adopted the global branding to become WorldSkills Ireland.

For more information on World Skills visit: WorldSkills Lyon 2024 – Worldskillsireland