S’pore’s former WorldSkills winners fly to Shanghai to support competing juniors

Aircraft maintenance competitor Aidan Wong with his parents Ellayne Soh and Joe Wong after the second day of the WorldSkills competition in Shanghai.

PHOTO: WORLDSKILLS SINGAPORE

Published Sep 26, 2026, 03:01 PM

Updated Sep 26, 2026, 03:01 PM

Some former WorldSkills medallists from Singapore, like Arthur Liew, travelled to Shanghai to support 34 young competitors at the 2026 competition.

Liew and others offer practical advice and mental support, emphasising resilience and hands-on skills that helped them in their careers.

Parents and SPS Syed Harun Alhabsyi highlighted the importance of skilled trades and encouraged greater respect and recognition for such professions in Singapore.

SHANGHAI – Seven years after Arthur Liew won a medallion of excellence in the world’s largest skills competition , he is back, this time to support his juniors.

The 26-year-old, who competed in mechatronics in WorldSkills Kazan in 2019, took leave to fly to Shanghai on Sept 23 - the first day of the WorldSkills contest.

Thirty-four young people from ITE and the polytechnics are at the 2026 global competition held at the National Exhibition and Convention Centre in Shanghai. All of them are winners at the local and regional WorldSkills competitions, and are representing Singapore in the four-day contest across 31 categories.

Over 30 supporters from Singapore have made the trip to China to cheer them on.

During the four days, Liew walks the competition floor and shares good practices from other countries, such as how they set up their work stations, with contestants Brandon Yap and Cedric Yau , both 21.

He also advises them on how to gear up for the mental battle.

“Brandon always has a confidence issue when it comes to assembling the machine fast. I tell him don’t overthink. Just lock in and do it.”

Liew credits WorldSkills with helping him land his job as a manufacturing engineer in US semiconductor supplier Applied Materials. His job is to ensure the quality build of semiconductor equipment that is sold to firms like Micron that produce computer chips.

Liew, a mechanical engineering graduate who interned at the multinational firm for two years before joining full-time last year, said his hands-on experience from WorldSkills set him apart in the eyes of his employer.

Senior Parliamentary Secretary for Education Syed Harun Alhabsyi, who visited Team Singapore at the event, said: “You see an entire ecosystem of support for the students.... Former winners are paying it forward for the students who are competing today.”

Shuner Villanueva Leong, who is also in Shanghai to support the students, was crowned world champion for beauty therapy in WorldSkills London 2011. The 36-year-old now trains students for the WorldSkills contest.

Harun said feedback from the polytechnics and ITE i s that past cohorts of WorldSkills participants are flourishing in their careers, or “doing greater things” in institutes of higher learning.

He said this is owed to “their ethos in honing their skills, and the deep dedication and resilience and discipline that they’ve had throughout this entire journey”.

Liew said the competition taught him to perform under pressure and to “never cut corners”, lest small issues snowball down the road. These qualities have served him well in the workplace.

Liew recalled how he had cut his hand with scissors while opening a cardboard box on the first day of WorldSkills Kazan. He was sent to the hospital, and he returned to the competition first thing after his hand was bandaged.

Former mechatronics competitor Arthur Liew (holding scissors) moments before he cut his finger at WorldSkills Kazan in 2019. PHOTO: ARHTUR LIEW

Former mechatronics competitor Arthur Liew (holding scissors) moments before he cut his finger at WorldSkills Kazan in 2019.

After all, he had flown all this way, and trained for three years for the moment.

The episode was “a good experience to train mental resilience”, he said.

Liew earned a medallion of excellence, given to competitors with a score of at least 800 out of 1,000.

Among the most ardent supporters were parents of more than 10 competitors.

Aircraft maintenance competitor Aidan Wong’s parents recounted how their son could not sit still to do his homework. Since young , the boy would much rather build planes out of wood, or take a bicycle apart and put it back together.

They supported Wong in pursuing skills, believing in their value alongside academic ability. The younger Wong enjoyed the hands-on work attaining his diploma in aerospace engineering at Temasek Polytechnic.

Wong’s parents hope he can go to university, but are leaving it up to their son. He is heading for National Service right after WorldSkills.

“We have not wanted him to live his life just to make us happy… You make your choice and you live with no regrets,” said father Joe Wong , 45, who runs an interior design firm.

He tells his son: “Maybe take a break from academics because you have been studying since primary school, then go for NS and see what you want to do next.”

Wong’s parents hope for people in skilled occupations such as electricians, plumbers and technicians to be given greater recognition in Singapore .

They also hope improved perceptions will encourage more Singaporeans to take up such skilled jobs.

“People respect doctors, lawyers, engineers. Electricians also spend their years studying,” Joe Wong said. “These skilled people are worth our respect, because if they don’t fix the thing, you can’t work on something.”

A former WorldSkills champion had wanted to come to Shanghai, but decided against it as she was heavily pregnant. Regina Chia, 27, had brought home the gold in health and social care in WorldSkills Kazan in Russia in 2019.

The new mother, who now works as a senior business development executive with NHG Health, has this advice for her juniors: “You will screw up during the competition, but if you tell yourself to do better, you will do better.”

“Your mindset and the daily words you feed yourself are very powerful.”

在上海举行的世界技能大赛第二天比赛结束后，飞机维修专业的参赛选手 Aidan Wong 与他的父母 Ellayne Soh 和 Joe Wong 合影。

图片：新加坡世界技能大赛

发布于 2026 年 9 月 26 日下午 3:01

更新于2026年9月26日下午3:01

一些来自新加坡的前世界技能大赛奖牌获得者，如 Arthur Liew，前往上海支持 34 名参加 2026 年比赛的年轻选手。

Liew 和其他人提供实用建议和心理支持，强调韧性和实践技能对他们的职业生涯有所帮助。

家长和SPS Syed Harun Alhabsyi强调了技术行业的重要性，并鼓励新加坡对这些职业给予更大的尊重和认可。

上海——七年前，亚瑟·刘在世界最大的技能大赛中赢得卓越奖章，如今他重返赛场，这次是为了支持他的后辈们。

这位 26 岁的选手曾在 2019 年喀山世界技能大赛中参加机电一体化项目，他于 9 月 23 日——世界技能大赛的第一天——请假飞往上海。

来自工艺教育学院和理工学院的34名青年正在上海国家会展中心参加2026年世界技能大赛。他们都是本地和区域世界技能大赛的优胜者，并将代表新加坡参加为期四天、涵盖31个类别的比赛。

超过30名来自新加坡的支持者前往中国为他们加油助威。

在为期四天的比赛中，刘在比赛场地走动，与参赛选手 Brandon Yap 和 Cedric Yau（两人均为 21 岁）分享其他国家的良好做法，例如他们如何设置工作站。

他还指导他们如何做好应对心理挑战的准备。

“布兰登在快速组装机器方面总是缺乏自信。我告诉他不要想太多，集中精力去做就行了。”

刘先生认为世界技能大赛帮助他获得了在美国半导体供应商应用材料公司担任制造工程师的工作。他的工作是确保半导体设备的制造质量，这些设备销售给像美光科技这样生产计算机芯片的公司。

刘先生是一名机械工程专业的毕业生，在去年正式加入这家跨国公司之前，他曾在该公司实习了两年。他表示，在世界技能大赛中获得的实践经验使他在雇主眼中脱颖而出。

教育部高级政务次长赛义德·哈伦·阿尔哈布西在活动中探望了新加坡队，他说：“你可以看到一个完整的支持体系在为学生服务……往届冠军正在帮助今天参赛的学生。”

Shuner Villanueva Leong也来到上海支持学生，她曾在2011年伦敦世界技能大赛上获得美容治疗世界冠军。这位36岁的选手现在负责培训学生参加世界技能大赛。

哈伦表示，来自理工学院和工艺教育学院的反馈是，过去参加世界技能大赛的学员在职业生涯中蓬勃发展，或者在高等学府“做着更伟大的事情”。

他表示，这归功于“他们磨练技能的精神，以及他们在整个过程中所展现出的深厚奉献精神、韧性和自律精神”。

刘先生表示，比赛教会了他如何在压力下发挥出色，以及“绝不偷工减料”，以免小问题演变成大麻烦。这些品质在工作中让他受益匪浅。

刘回忆说，在喀山世界技能大赛的第一天，他打开一个纸箱时不小心用剪刀割伤了手。他被送往医院，包扎好伤口后，第二天就重返赛场。

前机电一体化项目选手亚瑟·刘（手持剪刀）在2019年喀山世界技能大赛上割伤手指前的瞬间。照片：亚瑟·刘

前机电一体化选手 Arthur Liew（手持剪刀）在 2019 年喀山世界技能大赛上割伤手指前的瞬间。

毕竟，他千里迢迢飞来，为了这一刻训练了三年。

他说，这次经历“对锻炼心理韧性来说是一次很好的锻炼”。

刘获得了一枚卓越奖章，该奖章颁发给得分在 1000 分中至少达到 800 分的参赛者。

最热情的支持者中包括十多位参赛选手的家长。

飞机维修竞赛选手艾丹·王（Aidan Wong）的父母回忆说，他们的儿子从小就坐不住做作业。从小，他就更喜欢用木头制作飞机模型，或者把自行车拆开再组装起来。

他们支持黄先生追求技能，认为技能与学术能力同等重要。年轻的黄先生很享受在淡马锡理工学院获得航空航天工程文凭过程中所获得的实践经验。

黄的父母希望他能上大学，但最终决定权在儿子自己。他参加完世界技能大赛后将直接入伍服兵役。

“我们不希望他为了取悦我们而活……你做出自己的选择，然后无怨无悔地生活，”45岁的父亲Joe Wong说道，他经营一家室内设计公司。

他告诉儿子：“也许你可以暂时放下学业，因为你从小学就开始学习了，然后去服兵役，再看看接下来你想做什么。”

黄的父母希望新加坡能够给予电工、水管工和技术人员等技术工人更高的认可。

他们也希望，改善公众认知将鼓励更多新加坡人从事此类技术性工作。

“人们尊重医生、律师、工程师。电工也需要花费数年时间学习，”乔·王说。“这些技术工人值得我们尊重，因为如果他们不修好，你就无法继续工作。”

一位前世界技能大赛冠军原本想来上海参赛，但由于身怀六甲而作罢。27岁的谢丽娜（Regina Chia）曾在2019年俄罗斯喀山世界技能大赛上获得健康与社会护理项目的金牌。

这位新晋妈妈目前在 NHG Health 担任高级业务拓展主管，她给后辈们的建议是：“在比赛中你们肯定会犯错，但如果你告诉自己要做得更好，你就会做得更好。”

“你的心态和你每天对自己说的话都非常强大。”