Vancouver will host the 19th annual Skills Canada National Competition in 2013, allowing B.C. students to go head to head with students from across the country in technical trades competition.

Last night, Skills Canada BC announced its successful bid to host the national competition, which is Canada's largest display of trade and technology talent.

The Skills Canada National Competition brings together over 500 secondary, post-secondary and apprenticeship students from across Canada to compete in over 40 trade and technology contests in an Olympic-style event. From hairdressing to carpentry to web design, competitors put their skills in math and science to the test, as well as challenge their problem-solving, teamwork and creative thinking skills. Every year, the national competition attracts over 12,000 participants and spectators.

The Skills Canada National Competition, the only event of its kind in Canada, is a national, Olympic-style, multi-trade and technology competition for young students and apprentices in the country. Winners of the SCNC go on to compete at the WorldSkills Competition, representing Canada.

Skills Canada BC also recognized students who, after winning regional and provincial Skills Canada competitions, advanced to the national competition, which was held from June 1-4, 2011 in Quebec City. A total of 23 B.C. students won medals in 20 events - seven gold, 10 silver and three bronze medals - at the national competition in technical fields that will be key to the future of B.C.'s economy, such as tourism and hospitality, mining and shipbuilding.

Also recognized on Tuesday evening were three B.C. students, who competed in the 2010 national competition, among the 34 Canadians at the 2011 WorldSkills Competition in London, England:

• Michael Christensen from Sardis Secondary in Chilliwack, in Mechanical Computer Aided Design, winner: medallion of excellence.
• Daniel Hall from Thompson Rivers University in Kamloops, in Electronics.
• Riley Van Ryswyk from Earl Marriott Secondary in Surrey, in Web Site Development.

Quotes:

Minister of Advanced Education Naomi Yamamoto -

"Congratulations to the students who represented B.C. on the national stage this past year. Your accomplishments are a testament to the quality of the post-secondary education and training we're so proud of here in B.C."

Kelly Betts, president, Skills Canada BC -

"Congratulations to the Skills BC Competitors and thank you to our partners and sponsors, together we provide an opportunity to showcase the talents of BC youth. We look forward to working closely with B.C. businesses, educators, labour and government to shine a light on careers in trades and technology at the 2013 national event."

Donavon Elliott, president, Skills Compétences Canada -

"Each year Skills Canada activities, through its provincial and territorial organizations, reach over 100,000 young people; teaching them about the benefits of choosing a trade or technology profession. We are very privileged to host an annual Competition that highlights the best Canadian talent in trades and technology and even more proud to showcase it to youth from across Canada. In 2013, Skills Canada will bring the Skills Movement to Vancouver and host the 19th Skills Canada National Competition in Vancouver, B.C."

Kevin Evans, chief executive officer, Industry Training Authority -

"ITA is proud to have supported Skills Canada BC's recent winning bid to bring this Olympic-styled national skilled trades competition to the province. It will provide apprentices, training providers and all of our partners in industry training with an opportunity to showcase what it takes to be a successful tradesperson."

Learn More:

To learn more about Skills Canada BC, go to: http://www.skillscanada.bc.ca

To learn more about Skills Canada and the national competition, go to: http://www.skillscanada.com

To learn more about the Industry Training Authority, go to: http://www.itabc.ca

Canada Starts Here: The BC Jobs Plan: http://www.bcjobsplan.ca/

Skills for Growth, British Columbia's labour market strategy to 2020:

http://www.aved.gov.bc.ca/skills_for_growth/welcome.htm

Canada/British Columbia Labour Market Agreement:

http://www.aved.gov.bc.ca/labourmarketagreement/

A backgrounder follows.

Contact:

Joanne Whittier
Government Communications and Public Engagement
Ministry of Advanced Education
250 952-6400

BACKGROUNDER

Nov. 16, 2011 Ministry of Advanced Education
Skills Canada BC
B.C. medallists at Skills Canada competition

Siegfried Baumann

Precision Machining

British Columbia Institute of Technology

Hometown: Canyon

National gold medallist

Jason Cho

Web Site Development

Earl Marriott Secondary

Hometown: Surrey

National silver medallist

Jordan Evans

IT - Network Systems Administration

Sardis Secondary

Hometown: Chilliwack

National gold medallist

Nancy Huang

Graphic Design

Eric Hamber Secondary

Hometown: Vancouver

National silver medallist

Jay Kendrick-Cook

Autobody Repair

Victoria High School

Hometown: Victoria

National bronze medallist

Bentley Klassen

Carpentry

Abbotsford Collegiate

Hometown: Abbotsford

National bronze medallist

Jeffrey Nishi

IT - Network Systems Administration

Okanagan College

Hometown: Kelowna

National silver medallist

Carla Obando

Cooking

Templeton Secondary

Hometown: Vancouver

National gold medallist

Jesse Ong

Baking

Templeton Secondary

Hometown: Vancouver

National silver medallist

Jamie Ruddick

3D Character Computer Animation

Dover Bay Secondary

Hometown: Nanaimo

National gold medallist

Mandeep Saggu

Automation and Control

British Columbia Institute of Technology

Hometown: Surrey

National silver medallist

Lazar Savic

Robotics

Sullivan Heights Secondary

Hometown: Surrey

National silver medallist

Chris Leclair

Electronics

Georges P Vanier Secondary

Hometown: Courtenay

National gold medallist

Miao Ling Lin

Hairstyling

Vancouver Community College

Hometown: Port Coquitlam

National silver medallist

Andrew Lines

Aircraft Maintenance

Northern Lights College

Hometown: Campbell River

National silver medallist

Molly Liu

Hairstyling

Samuel Robertson Technical Secondary

Hometown: Maple Ridge

National silver medallist

Jadyn Lowe

Carpentry

Okanagan College

Hometown: Kelowna

National bronze medallist

Jamie Maloway

Electronics

Okanagan College

Hometown: Kelowna

National gold medallist

Maggie Selzer

Women's Apparel Design

Eric Hamber Secondary

Hometown: Vancouver

National silver medallist

Kai Singh

Robotics

Sullivan Heights Secondary

Hometown: Surrey

National silver medallist

Josiah Stefani

3D Character Computer Animation

Dover Bay Secondary

Hometown: Nanaimo

National gold medallist

John Strutinski

Robotics

Sullivan Heights Secondary

Hometown: Surrey

National silver medallist

Curtis Thomson

Refrigeration

Joint Apprentice Refrigeration Training School

Hometown: Salmon Arm

National gold medallist

Team Canada members at WorldSkills 2011

Michael Christensen

Mechanical CADD

Sardis Secondary

Hometown: Chilliwack

WorldSkills 2011 Medallion of Excellence recipient

Daniel Hall

Electronics

Thompson Rivers University

Hometown: Kamloops

WorldSkills 2011 competitor

Riley Van Ryswyk

Web Site Development

Earl Marriott Secondary

Hometown: Surrey

WorldSkills 2011 competitor

Contact:

Joanne Whittier
Government Communications and Public Engagement
Ministry of Advanced Education
250 952-6400