Kim Joyoung (second from right), the gold medal winner in hairdressing, on Sept. 27 holds the national flag at the closing ceremony of this year's WorldSkills Competition at the National Exhibition and Convention Center in Shanghai. (WorldSkills)
By Lee Ji Yae
A domestic team of young technical workers has finished second overall at this year's WorldSkills Competition in Shanghai.
The Ministry of Employment and Labor and the Human Resources Development Service of Korea on Sept. 28 said the national squad was runner-up with a score of 253, winning four gold, 14 silver and six bronze medals. The country also earned 16 Medallions for Excellence, an honor that indicates the achievement of world-class standards in a trade by a competitor.
The global vocational skills tournament is held every two years and attracts young skilled workers from around the world to compete in industrial and occupational fields. Competitors complete assigned tasks within a set time limit in categories like welding, automotive repair, culinary arts, cosmetology and robot systems integration and are evaluated on the accuracy, quality and execution of their skills.
Korea showed strong performances in information and communications technology (ICT), winning six medals including one gold in disciplines like web technologies, IT network systems administration, cloud computing, mobile applications development, software testing and ICT network infrastructure.
Son Hyeonbeen won the gold in web technologies, his fifth straight since winning his first in the 2017 competition in Abu Dhabi, the United Arab Emirates.
The country also won a gold in social and personal services in addition to its traditional stronghold of manufacturing and engineering technology. It also won its first gold in hairdressing since the 2007 competition in Shizuoka, Japan.
Minister of Employment and Labor Kim Young Hoon said, "We express our thanks and encouragement to the team for raising Korea's status as a tech power, and the government will provide generous support to ensure that young technical talent can confidently grow into leaders of the future."
ljyhwa@korea.kr
