The best of the North West prepare to take on the World!
Emmett McCourt and Ian McMahon are ready to take on the World at the skills equivalent of the Olympics.
North West Regional College Tiling student Ian McMahon and Catering Lecturer Emmett McCourt have sharpened the tools of their trade, practiced their techniques and prepared for many weeks and months, and finally the time has come for them to showcase their skills on a global stage.
Both Ian and Emmett will be attending WorldSkills 2011, in London from 5th – 8th October. This four day event is the skills equivalent of the Olympics, bringing together competitors in 46 different skill areas to compete to be the best in the world. Ian is the UK’s only competitor in Wall and Floor Tiling, and is the first to take on this particular skill challenge in 9 years. He was selected from over 1500 potential candidates from across Scotland, England, Wales and Northern Ireland, for his place in Team UK.
North West Regional College was then chosen from hundreds of applications to present an exclusive Showcase presentation at the event, which will attract over 150,000 visitors. Catering Lecturer Emmett and four exceptional students will be showcasing the best of the North West to the audience with their cookery demonstration, ‘An Historical and Cultural Food Journey of the North West of Ireland’.
Katrina Lynch, Margaret Carr, Ciaran Doherty and Joanne McCallion will assist Emmett in demonstrating how to prepare and cook four dishes that celebrate the local food heritage of Derry and Donegal, including Cruibins (Pigs Trotters) with Stout, Fillet of Wild Salmon and Alexis Soyer’s Famine Soup.
Visitors to the showcase are getting a taste of the recipes that will feature in Emmett’s forthcoming book, ‘Feast or Famine’, which charts the developing food history of the region from the Irish famine to present day.
College Principal and Chief Executive Seamus Murphy sees this as a chance for young people from the North West to have a place in history. “The last time a WorldSkills competition was held in the UK was over two decades ago – this really is a once in a generation opportunity for our students and we’re delighted that the excellent standards North West Regional College students achieve will be recognised by such a prestigious international audience. To be part of an event which recognises skills at the very highest level is truly inspirational. I wish Ian every success as he takes on this momentous challenge, and I am confident he and our Catering students will rise to the occasion and help to put on a spectacular show.”
As he completes his final preparations, Ian says he is well prepared for the competition. “I’m ready to go now – we’ve been in training for a long time and I’m keen to get there and get started. My lecturer (and Team UK Tiling expert), David McCay has been so supportive and helpful throughout this time, and I’m grateful to him for his guidance and support.” Ian will have certain targets he must meet every day of the competition, which will test his skills to the narrowest of margins.
North West Regional College has had significant success in local and national skills competitions this year, with Electrical Installation student Adrian Canning recently winning a Gold medal at the UK skills finals. He now hopes to follow in Ian’s footsteps and has his sights set on WorldSkills in Leipzig 2013.
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Weather for Derry
Sunday 19 May 2013
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