Vehicle Painting Apprentice Brings Home a Silver for Australia
29 November 2007
Kangan Batman TAFE vehicle painting apprentice, Stuart Aisbett, has helped put Australia on the world stage for skills excellence, winning a silver in the 39th International WorldSkills Competition in Shuizuoka, Japan.
Stuart, a 22-year-old apprentice at Alan's Panels in the regional Victorian town of Moe, took part in four days of intense competition from 15 to 18 November 2007.
Stuart's silver adds to the impressive WorldSkills Team Australia Skillaroos' tally of five medals (one gold, three silver and one bronze).
As a result, Australia is now ranked fifth in the world for skills and trades - the best result for the country since 1988.
WorldSkills Australia CEO Mark Callaghan said, This is the best result for an Australian team in WorldSkills since the International Competition in 1988 in Sydney.
This superb achievement shows the incredible wealth of knowledge we have in these industries in Australia, and the importance of sustained and continued investment in our skills and trades.
These are our finest young ambassadors for careers in skills and trades. Each and every competitor deserves our praise and congratulations.'
Stuart was selected to become Australia's vehicle painting representative in this prestigious skills competition after winning Gold at the 2006 WorldSkills National Competition in Melbourne.
Praising Stuart on his win, Kangan Batman TAFE CEO Ray Griffiths said Stuart is an excellent ambassador for apprentices across all disciplines. He's passionate, proud and always willing to share his knowledge with others.
He's a very worthy candidate and Kangan Batman TAFE is extremely proud of his achievements to date. We wish him all the best of luck for the future.
In the last few months before the international competition, Stuart gained valuable advice from industry experts, and practised his skills at Kangan Batman TAFE's newest training facility, the Automotive Centre of Excellence at Docklands.
Stuart is set to complete his apprenticeship in February 2008 and has ambitions to start his own custom paint shop in the future.
The next National Competition will be held in Sydney from 11-13th July 2008 and eligible competitors will advance to the 2009 International Competition in Calgary, Canada.
