AWARD-winning Gwent electrical engineer Luke Elsmore has realised his dreams by securing a coveted place as part of the UK team at the WorldSkills final in Brazil later this year.

Luke, aged 20 from Blackwood, a fourth year apprentice employed by Industrial Automation and Control Ltd, in Queensway Meadows, Newport, will now travel to Sao Paulo, Brazil, to represent the UK in the final of the world’s largest international skills competition..

Luke is a member of the 40 member strong UK Skills team and will compete in the WorldSkills competition in the industrial controls section of the global competition.

WorldSkills, often described as the Skills Olympics, sees around 1,000 young people aged 18 to 25, from all over the world, come together every two years to compete for medals in more than 37 different skills including electrical installation, welding, web design, cooking, hairdressing and bricklaying.

Luke, a former pupil at Blackwood Comprehensive School, is one of just four Welsh competitors selected to compete at WorldSkills Sao Paulo 2015.

The other three who will join him from Wales are hairdresser Eleni Constantinou, 21, from Caerphilly; auto technician, Elijah Sumner, 20, from Cardiff; and carpentry student, Owain Jones, 21, from Blaenau Ffestiniog.

Luke was named Quality Skills Alliance Wales apprentice of the year and gained a similar recognition from ESTnet earlier this year.

He said: “I am really excited. It is so great to have this opportunity to prove myself on a world stage. I’m honoured to be representing not only Wales but also the UK, and that people feel that I’m capable of competing at such a high level.

“I still can’t really believe that I’m going to Sao Paulo. I really hope this inspires other young people in Wales to take part in something like this, as it’s a great opportunity and it has been a fantastic experience so far.”

Luke has been in training specifically to compete in the WorldSkills competition over the past year. He has had to attain a specific skills level and then prove himself at various competitions and tests along the way. Alongside his apprenticeship at IAC Luke attends the University of South Wales in Newport and also Newport and District Gwent Training (NDGTA) as

Luke said: “I am a mixture of being excited and apprehensive of the enormity of the competition, representing the UK on the WorldSkills competition and also travelling to Brazil. I can’t wait to get going and I hope to do well enough to bring a medal back to Wales.”

Luke said he would be thinking of his proud family and friends back home in Blackwood as he matched his skills against some of the best youngsters in the world.

Peter Lewis, managing director of IAC Ltd, said: “It is a huge honour ands terrific recognition for the company to know that one of our apprentices will be competing for the UK at the global competition.”

Peter also paid tribute to Alex Scott, aged 22, from Newport, another apprentice at IAC Ltd and former pupil at Lliswerry High School, who lost out after going head to head with Luke in the final selection for the single place in Brazil at WorldSkills

Peter said: “Luke and Alex have been working and training hard over very many weeks to secure a place in the World Skills final in Brazil. The pair of them are fine examples of kind of apprentices that we train here at IAC Ltd.

“Both are excellent engineers and if we could we would have liked them both to have gone to Brazil but sadly there was just the one place to fill in their category in the UK WorldSkills team.”

The four Welsh WorldSkills competitors were given a Senedd Cardiff send off by Deputy Minister for Skills and Technology Julie James.

The Deputy Minister said: “I am so proud that Eleni, Elijah, Luke and Owain will be competing against the very best in their field from across the world.

"I am delighted to announce that further funding for apprenticeships has been secured. This is excellent news for both young people and employers. Over the next four years, with the help of EU funds, we are investing £284m to help our young people gain the skills, experience and qualifications they need to succeed in the workplace.

"Apprenticeships offer high quality learning that provides our young people and their employers with the skills Wales needs to compete effectively in the world economy.”

First Minister, Carwyn Jones also offered his best wishes to the Welsh competitors.

He said: “I’d like to wish Eleni, Elijah, Luke and Owain all the very best in Sao Paulo. I am sure they will enjoy this challenging and unforgettable experience.

“It’s great that ten per cent of Team UK are from Wales – further proof that Wales punches above its weight on the world stage.

“I’ve no doubt our competitors will be excellent ambassadors for Wales and hopefully more of our young people will be inspired to follow in their footsteps.”