34 young people gear up to represent Singapore at ‘Olympics of skills’ in Shanghai

Brandon Yap is among 34 young people from ITE and the polytechnics who will represent Singapore at the WorldSkills Competition in Shanghai.

ST PHOTO: MARK CHEONG

Published Sep 13, 2026, 12:00 PM

Updated Sep 13, 2026, 12:00 PM

Brandon Yap, after narrowly missing polytechnic admission, is representing Singapore in mechatronics at the WorldSkills Competition in Shanghai with 33 other youths.

The competition, dubbed the "Olympics of vocational skills", features more than 1,400 competitors from over 70 countries across 64 skill areas, which include seven new events.

Yap trains intensively with his team, supported by family and coaches, aiming for a podium finish. Singapore values these vocational skills for future workforce adaptability and success.

SINGAPORE – After missing the N-level cut-off for polytechnic admission by one point, Brandon Yap turned his academic struggles into motivation and is now set to represent Singapore at the prestigious WorldSkills Competition.

When he was young, Yap would help his dad as he fixed a lightbulb. That got him wondering how things work.

The experience later sparked his interest in engineering, eventually leading the teen, who was aimless in secondary school, to pursue a Diploma in Electrical Engineering at Ngee Ann Polytechnic. He also joined an international competition in a field entirely new to him – mechatronics.

Mechatronics is a branch of engineering that involves using mechanics, electronics and programming to build automated systems, such as those used on factory assembly lines.

Yap, 21, is among 34 young people from ITE and the polytechnics who will represent Singapore at the WorldSkills Competition in Shanghai in just over a week’s time.

When he was in ITE, Yap was eager to take up opportunities. “I wanted to graduate with something meaningful, not just a cert. I thought that it was important to know what my goal in life was rather than working aimlessly,” he said.

Yap jumped at the chance to participate in WorldSkills.

The 34 young people, all winners at the local and regional WorldSkills competitions, will take part in 31 categories – a record for Singapore.

Organised by WorldSkills International every two years, the event is the world’s largest skills competition. It seeks to advance technical and vocational education.

Dubbed the “Olympics of skills”, the contest, which runs from Sept 22 to Sept 27, will bring together over 1,400 competitors from more than 70 countries and regions.

They will compete in a record 64 skill areas, such as aircraft maintenance, baking, floristry, precision engineering and information technology.

Yap, who bagged gold at both the local and regional WorldSkills contests, will compete as part of a two-man team against 31 other teams in the mechatronics category.

He builds the parts, while his teammate, Cedric Yau, who is pursuing a Diploma in Mechatronics and Robotics at the same polytechnic, focuses on programming. Together, they will have to design, assemble, program and maintain automated industrial machinery.

The 48th WorldSkills Competition will feature seven new skill events as organisers seek to reflect industrial shifts and technological advances. These include intelligent security technology and dental prosthetics.

Team Singapore will compete in three of the new skill areas: rail vehicle technology, software testing, and unmanned aerial systems.

Logistics and freight forwarding, which did not meet the minimum participation requirements, will be held for the last time in 2026.

Addressing Team Singapore at a send-off ceremony on Sept 4, Senior Minister of State for Education Janil Puthucheary said WorldSkills had grown into a global movement since it was founded in 1950.

“We are living through a period of rapid change. AI and automation are reshaping industries. The nature of work is evolving faster than ever before. In this environment, you may wonder: Does skills mastery still matter?

“The answer is yes – more than ever. For Singapore, our participation in WorldSkills reflects something we deeply believe in,” he said, citing competitors’ precision, problem-solving skills, adaptability and ability to perform under pressure, on top of their technical proficiency.

“These are skills and qualities that no technology can fully replicate, qualities that will always be in demand.”

In the last competition, held in Lyon, France, in 2024 , Singapore placed seventh overall, out of more than 70 countries.

China emerged top with 49 medals, 36 of which were gold. South Korea came in second, with 10 golds among its 32 medals. Switzerland, France, Taiwan and Japan were also among the top performers.

Yap recounted how joining a “friendly” competition in Tianjin, China, in May had shown him how intensively top teams like China train.

“It was very intimidating because it made me realise how far away I was from winning.”

Running is part of his training

Yap has been training from 9am to 6pm , five days a week since graduating from poly in April. He spends his days building and wiring machine parts like conveyor belts, then making sure everything can work together under tight time limits.

His mechatronics coach and lecturers help him prepare for the competition.

As part of Yap’s training, his coach also has him run every day, clocking about 20km a week. This builds his fitness and stamina for the challenge, which requires him to move fast to complete the project within several hours.

Despite these efforts, however, Yap is clear on one thing: “There’s always someone putting in more effort. I need to know where I stand, manage my expectations and still try my best.”

To cope with the stress, Yap talks to his three older siblings and his parents. His father owns an interior design business, while his mother works as a manager.

“I talk to people rather than keeping things inside. It will build up eventually. My family and friends are my biggest supporters,” he said.

Peter Lam, chairman of the WorldSkills Singapore Council and chief executive of ITE, said: “Skills-based professions are essential to Singapore’s economy and our everyday lives.”

WorldSkills competitions can provide an important launchpad for young Singaporeans joining these professions, allowing them to benchmark their skills against the best in the world, he said.

To attract talent to skills-based professions, Singapore needs to provide clear pathways for young people to progress in their careers and ensure that these skills are fairly rewarded, Lam added.

Yap will study electrical engineering at Nanyang Technological University on the Nanyang Global Scholarship. He hopes to work in a company like SP Group and help solve people’s problems.

He said joining WorldSkills has helped him grow up.

Yap recalled how his parents were worried when he was in primary school as he was not motivated and wanted only to play. It was only in secondary school that he began to realise the importance of taking his studies seriously.

“I thought about how my parents were not going to be young forever. I want to make sure that I’m capable of helping my parents instead of making them worry about my studies.”

He saw the free time he had in secondary school vanish.

“It was a huge change. I needed to tune my body, tune my mind to persevere through the initial training phase. When I started training, I kept failing and failing. You need to condition your mind to eventually succeed,” he said.

The grind started to pay off for Yap when he saw small wins that built his confidence.

“My satisfaction comes when I see the system working, like if I build a conveyor and it’s able to move – that’s my little milestone of the day.”

Of his hopes for the upcoming showdown, he said: “I don’t ask for No. 1. I want something more realistic – I wish to be on the podium.”

Singapore’s medal winners will receive cash prizes funded by the WorldSkills Singapore Office. Gold winners get $20,000, while silver and bronze medallists receive $10,000 and $5,000 respectively. Winning teams will receive $30,000 for gold, $15,000 for silver and $7,500 for bronze.

Brandon Yap 是来自工艺教育学院和理工学院的 34 名将代表新加坡参加上海世界技能大赛的年轻人之一。

《海峡时报》照片：张马克

发布于2026年9月13日下午12:00

更新于2026年9月13日中午12:00

Brandon Yap 险些被理工学院录取，但他将与另外 33 名青年一起代表新加坡参加在上海举行的世界技能大赛的机电一体化项目。

这项被誉为“职业技能奥运会”的比赛，有来自 70 多个国家的 1400 多名选手参加，比赛涵盖 64 个技能领域，其中包括 7 个新项目。

叶在家人和教练的支持下，与团队进行高强度训练，目标是登上领奖台。新加坡重视这些职业技能，认为它们有助于未来劳动力的适应能力和成功。

新加坡——布兰登·叶（Brandon Yap）在N水准考试中仅以一分之差未能达到理工学院的录取分数线，但他将学业上的困难转化为动力，现在他将代表新加坡参加享有盛誉的世界技能大赛。

叶小时候经常帮爸爸修灯泡，这让他开始对事物运作的原理产生好奇。

这段经历后来激发了他对工程学的兴趣，最终促使这位中学时期迷茫的少年在义安理工学院攻读电气工程文凭。他还参加了一项国际比赛，比赛领域是他完全陌生的——机电一体化。

机电一体化是工程学的一个分支，它利用机械、电子和编程来构建自动化系统，例如工厂装配线上使用的系统。

21岁的叶同学是来自工艺教育学院和理工学院的34名年轻人之一，他们将在一周多一点的时间里代表新加坡参加在上海举行的世界技能大赛。

在工艺教育学院（ITE）就读期间，叶先生积极把握各种机会。“我希望毕业时能有所成就，而不仅仅是拿到一张证书。我认为重要的是要清楚自己的人生目标，而不是漫无目的地工作。”他说道。

叶先生欣然接受了参加世界技能大赛的机会。

这 34 名年轻人都是本地和区域世界技能大赛的优胜者，他们将参加 31 个类别的比赛——这是新加坡的参赛类别纪录。

该赛事由世界技能组织每两年举办一次，是全球规模最大的技能竞赛，旨在促进技术和职业教育的发展。

这项被誉为“技能奥运会”的比赛将于9月22日至27日举行，届时将有来自70多个国家和地区的1400多名参赛者齐聚一堂。

他们将参加创纪录的 64 个技能领域的比赛，例如飞机维修、烘焙、花艺、精密工程和信息技术。

在本地和区域世界技能大赛中均获得金牌的叶将作为两人团队的一员，与另外 31 支队伍参加机电一体化类别的比赛。

他负责零件组装，而他的队友 Cedric Yau（在同一所理工学院攻读机电一体化与机器人学文凭）则专注于编程。他们将共同设计、组装、编程和维护自动化工业机械。

第48届世界技能大赛将新增七项技能项目，以反映产业变革和技术进步。这些新增项目包括智能安防技术和牙科修复。

新加坡队将参加三个新技能领域的比赛：轨道车辆技术、软件测试和无人机系统。

物流和货运代理行业由于未达到最低参与要求，将于 2026 年最后一次举办。

9月4日，在新加坡代表队的欢送仪式上，教育部高级政务部长贾尼尔·普图切里表示，世界技能大赛自1950年创立以来，已发展成为一项全球性运动。

我们正经历着一个快速变革的时代。人工智能和自动化正在重塑各行各业。工作的性质正以前所未有的速度发生变化。在这种环境下，你可能会想：技能精湛还重要吗？

“答案是肯定的——而且比以往任何时候都更加重要。对新加坡而言，我们参与世界技能大赛体现了我们深信不疑的理念，”他说道，并列举了参赛选手除了技术熟练之外，还展现出的精准度、解决问题的能力、适应能力和抗压能力。

“这些技能和素质是任何技术都无法完全复制的，也是永远都需要的素质。”

在 2024 年于法国里昂举行的上一届比赛中，新加坡在 70 多个国家中排名第七。

中国以49枚奖牌（其中36枚金牌）位居榜首。韩国以32枚奖牌（其中10枚金牌）位列第二。瑞士、法国、中国台湾和日本也名列前茅。

叶先生回忆说，今年5月他参加了在中国天津举行的一场“友谊赛”，这场比赛让他见识到了像中国这样的顶级球队的训练强度。

“这让我感到非常沮丧，因为它让我意识到我离胜利还有多远。”

跑步是他训练的一部分

自四月份从理工学院毕业以来，叶先生每周五天，每天从早上九点到下午六点进行训练。他每天的工作是组装和连接传送带等机器零件，然后在严格的时间限制内确保所有部件都能协同工作。

他的机电一体化教练和讲师帮助他备战比赛。

作为叶的训练之一，他的教练还让他每天跑步，每周跑量约为20公里。这有助于增强他的体能和耐力，以应对这项挑战，因为这项挑战要求他快速行动，在几个小时内完成项目。

尽管如此，叶先生很清楚一点：“总有人比我更努力。我需要知道自己的水平，调整好期望值，然后继续尽我所能。”

为了缓解压力，叶会和他的三个哥哥姐姐以及父母聊天。他的父亲经营一家室内设计公司，母亲则是一名经理。

“我宁愿跟人倾诉，而不是把事情憋在心里。事情总会慢慢积累起来的。我的家人和朋友是我最大的支持者，”他说。

新加坡世界技能大赛理事会主席兼工艺教育学院首席执行官林荣福表示：“技能型职业对新加坡的经济和我们的日常生活至关重要。”

他表示，世界技能大赛可以为新加坡年轻人进入这些行业提供一个重要的跳板，让他们能够将自己的技能与世界上最好的人进行比较。

林先生补充说，为了吸引人才从事技能型职业，新加坡需要为年轻人提供清晰的职业发展路径，并确保这些技能得到公平的回报。

叶同学将凭借南洋全球奖学金在南洋理工大学攻读电气工程专业。他希望将来能在像新加坡太平洋集团这样的公司工作，帮助人们解决实际问题。

他说，参加世界技能大赛帮助他成长。

叶先生回忆说，他小学时父母很担心，因为他学习没有动力，只想玩耍。直到中学，他才开始意识到认真学习的重要性。

“我想到父母不可能永远年轻。我希望自己有能力帮助父母，而不是让他们为我的学业担心。”

他眼睁睁地看着中学时期的空闲时间消失殆尽。

“这对我来说是一个巨大的改变。我需要调整身体，调整心态，才能坚持度过最初的训练阶段。刚开始训练的时候，我总是失败。你需要训练自己的意志，最终才能成功，”他说。

叶的努力开始有了回报，他取得的小胜利增强了他的信心。

“看到系统运转起来，比如我建了一条传送带，它能够运转——这就是我一天中的一个小里程碑。”

对于即将到来的对决，他表示：“我并不奢望第一名。我想要更现实的目标——我希望能够登上领奖台。”

新加坡的奖牌获得者将获得由世界技能大赛新加坡办事处提供的现金奖励。金牌获得者将获得20,000新元，银牌和铜牌获得者将分别获得10,000新元和5,000新元。团体冠军将分别获得30,000新元（金牌）、15,000新元（银牌）和7,500新元（铜牌）。