Grand Welcome for Gold Medallist and Team Members to WorldSkills Competition

Jamaica’s WorldSkills Shanghai 2026 optoelectronic technology gold medallist, Brandon Brown, and the rest of the island’s team to the 48th WorldSkills Competition received a grand welcome when they landed at the Sangster International Airport in Montego Bay, St. James, on September 30.

The competition was held at the National Exhibition and Convention Centre (NECC) in Shanghai, China, from September 23 to 26.

Twenty-three-year-old Mr. Brown from Kingston took gold in optoelectronic technology, the science of light and lighting, which covers everything from advertising billboards to phone screens and laser technology.

He competed against eight countries, including China, Japan, Iran, South Korea, Belgium, Barbados, Brazil and Mexico.

Mr. Brown said his confidence dipped when he learned how long some rivals had prepared.

“The Chinese competitor told me he started training before he even touched high school,” said Mr. Brown.

He added that he had trained for only about a year and half, but he caught up.

“So, I didn’t really expect to get gold. I just went there, did my best and, somehow, I got the gold,” he noted.

Mr. Brown works with HEART/NSTA Trust and is pursuing a bachelor’s degree in education, majoring in electrical technology, at the University of Technology Jamaica (UTech).

His advice to young people is to “be curious, because that’s how I reached where I am right now”.

Another standout was 19-year-old Omar Cockett, a New Forest High School graduate who copped the Best of Nation award after recording a score of 671, narrowly missing the 700 points required for a medal.

Mr. Cockett participated in the newly introduced Unmanned Aerial Systems category.

He told JIS News that he was introduced to unmanned aerial systems only in March of this year and began training in April. He competed alongside participants with university-level experience.

“My word of inspiration – I would say, try new things,” Mr. Cockett explained.

In the meantime, Technical Delegate for WorldSkills Jamaica, Dwayne Bent, said the team’s performance was important for developing Jamaica’s workforce in areas that are shaping the global economy.

“It sets a platform for us to develop in those areas. Those are the areas and the sectors that are driving the world economies,” Mr. Bent underscored.

Mayor of Montego Bay, Councillor Richard Vernon, said that the results show what Jamaica can achieve and urged the country to look beyond its traditional strengths.

He also credited education investment and HEART/NSTA Trust for the progress.

“It is time that we start to diversify the economy a little bit more from BPO (business process outsourcing) and hospitality to now KPO (knowledge process