COUNTING DOWN TO WORLDSKILLS WITH THE UK TILING TEAM
With the WorldSkills 2017 final in Abu Dhabi fast approaching, anticipation is rising for the UK Tiling Team. On Thursday 7th September, Schlüter-Systems caught up with them at the Greenbank Campus of Southern Regional College, Northern Ireland (SRC), to hand-deliver a couple of gifts prior to the start of this prestigious competition.
Back in March, talented young tiler Armondas Tamulis from the college fought off tough competition from fellow student, Kieran Magee, to become the team’s chosen delegate. Schlüter Consultant for Ireland, James Callinan, presented Armondas with trousers and a kit holdall and asked him about his feelings on the competition. “I’m nervous but looking forward to WorldSkills, as it has been 4 years of training”, says Armondas, “I’d recommend the experience to anyone. You get to meet people from all over the world and train to be the best you possibly can—it has given me a lot of confidence.”
SRC tutor, Paul Doran, who has trained young tilers for 12 years and tutored Armondas throughout the competition, comments “The funding from Schlüter-Systems has allowed us to travel, increase training hours and continue training at a very high international standard. I’m very proud of Armondas—with his dedication and focus, he stands a fantastic chance in Abu Dhabi”.
Schlüter-Systems first announced its involvement as main sponsor of the UK Tiling Team back in June 2016 and has been supporting their journey throughout WorldSkills 2017. The final of the WorldSkills Competition 2017 takes place in Abu Dhabi from 14th-19th October and a total of 72 member countries and regions will be taking part, competing across 50 skills— ranging from floristry to tiling. For more information, visit www.worldskills.org.