A performance was staged to mark the opening of the competition, running from Saturday to Tuesday. [Photo by Yang Cheng/chinadaily.com.cn]

National team to compete in next year's WorldSkills contest in France

The winners of a three-day national skills competition in Tianjin will be heading to Lyon, France in September next year to represent China in the WorldSkills vocational skills championship.

The national skills competition, which opened on Saturday, held 109 events with 4,045 competitors from across the nation. The events covered a range of areas from creative arts and fashion to manufacturing and information technology.

Among the events, 62 were qualifiers for next year's WorldSkills competition in France, and 47 were national events offering skilled people a stage to showcase their skills.

Mao Yajing, a 21-year-old from Shanxi province who competed in the cabinetmaking event, said he reveled in the challenge of having to build a cabinet in 16 hours over three days.

"Compared with my rivals, I'm less experienced, but I find carpentry amazingly interesting," Mao said.

"I had poor concentration before learning carpentry, but now my attention is more focused. I'm obsessed with woodcraft and wooden works with traditional Chinese elements."

Li Quanli, head judge of the mechatronics event — a qualifier for next year's WorldSkills competition — said the requirements have changed continuously in the past decade because of the advancement of technologies, materials and the practical demands of manufacturing companies.

"We've seen the competition become more difficult and complicated, and it involves more knowledge of smart and robotics systems," he said.

He said the event is a test of competitors' abilities in design, installation, programming, maintenance and understanding of product-making standards.

Winners of 62 events will undertake intensive training to sharpen their skills for the WorldSkills in Lyon.

Stefan Praschl, a board member of WorldSkills International, said he believes Chinese competitors will perform well as always at next year's competition, and that the country has gained much experience in WorldSkills competitions in recent years.

China first sent a delegation to the WorldSkills competition in 2011 after joining WorldSkills International in 2010.

In 2020, China organized its first national skills competition to encourage more young people and skilled workers to get engaged in skills-related competitions and promote the nation's vocational education and skills training.