Two Salzburg competitors head to WorldSkills in Shanghai
Tuesday 15th September 2026 on 20:15 in
Austria
Two young skilled workers from Salzburg will compete at the WorldSkills vocational world championships in Shanghai, ORF reported. More than 1,400 participants from industrial, technical and service professions are expected to take part, including 21-year-old agricultural and construction machinery technician Bernhard Moser and 22-year-old florist Julia Gschwandtner.
Moser, from Eben im Pongau, completed most of his preparation in the repair workshop of a company in Puch near Hallein. His work includes identifying and repairing hydraulic problems, and he has already completed hundreds of hours of training.
“The main training takes place during working hours,” Moser said. Machines arrive and he has to find the faults. He also trains at weekends, including by learning English, the language of the competition. At his grandfather’s farm, he can repair machines “that do not work”, which he said is also useful practice.
In Shanghai, Moser will have to work independently for four days. His trainer, Andreas Scharler, who heads the repair centre at the Liebherr company, said the team practises with faults that occur in real life rather than invented problems. An excavator might move poorly or lack power, for example, leaving competitors to determine the cause from as many as 30 or 40 possible faults.
Gschwandtner, from Bergheim, faces a different challenge. The 2025 Austrian national champion in floristry has been focusing on precision, speed and creativity during her final training week, giving up her holiday to practise.
“Everything is practised down to the smallest detail,” Gschwandtner said. No cut may be damaged, and every flower must be perfect. Mental strength is also crucial, she said, because the competitor who succeeds is the one who can withstand the pressure of four days of competition.
Gschwandtner said she felt well prepared and wanted to show what she had learned and practised throughout the year. The Austrian WorldSkills team has won numerous medals in recent years, although the last podium finish by a skilled worker from Salzburg came seven years ago.
The competitions in Shanghai begin on September 22.