Robots and Young Talent to Take Center Stage at WorldSkills Opening

Humanoid robots will share the stage with young performers as Shanghai opens the 48th WorldSkills Competition tomorrow.

The ceremony will start at 8pm at the Shanghai World Expo Cultural Center, according to WorldSkills. It will welcome teams ahead of four days of competition in trades and technologies ranging from construction and manufacturing to creative arts and services.

Produced by Shanghai Media Group, the ceremony will last about 90 minutes and feature nearly 1,300 performers, the youngest aged 7, Jiefang Daily reported after attending a rehearsal.

A stage built around the competitors

The central stage draws on sunmao, traditional Chinese mortise-and-tenon joinery. An expanded performance floor will put competitors around the action, while an outdoor stage connects to the arena along a procession route.

Delegations will greet more than 3,500 spectators outside before entering. Multimedia sequences will evoke ancient Chinese craftsmanship, the Silk Road and skills from different cultures and eras, the newspaper reported.

Young people from five continents will recount how vocational skills changed their lives. Six former Chinese WorldSkills gold medalists will escort the national flag.

Months of preparation have gone into the performance by humans and robots. AI has assisted calculations and corrections, while people have led creative decisions and coordinated movement with lighting.

Chief director Hou Jie has promised a surprise when the competition is declared open, with the stage itself taking part in the reveal.

From ceremony to competition

WorldSkills says the opening program includes a Parade of Nations, with all competing teams entering the venue, as well as speeches by invited guests and representatives of the WorldSkills Champions Trust. The full ceremony will be livestreamed on the organization's Facebook and YouTube channels, with recordings available afterward.

The Shanghai competition will bring together 1,385 competitors from 68 countries and regions, according to an announcement from the city's human resources and social security bureau yesterday.

China has entered 71 competitors across all 64 skill competitions. Its 220-member delegation also includes 64 experts, 64 interpreters and support staff, the bureau said.

The event is part of a movement that began in Madrid in 1950 with a contest for young people from Spain and Portugal, intended to address shortages of skilled workers and encourage vocational training. It has since developed into a biennial international competition.

While the opening celebrations take place beside the Huangpu River, the competition itself will be held at the National Exhibition and Convention Center (Shanghai) from September 23 to 26. The closing ceremony is scheduled for September 27.