Willow AlientoAdam Morgan shines in Shanghai
Australia’s HVAC&R Skillaroo for 2026, Adam Morgan, has been recognised with a Medal for Excellence at WorldSkills in Shanghai.
Up against HVAC&R apprentices from around the world, Morgan placed 6th in the Skill 38 (Refrigeration and Air Conditioning) section of the competition.
The 48th WorldSkills International Competition was a four-day epic held from September 22–27 at the National Exhibition and Convention Centre in Shanghai.
The high-pressure competition brought more than 1,400 apprentices from over 70 countries to compete within 64 skill areas.
According to World Skills Australia, this is the largest global event celebrating vocational excellence, and the 2026 Skillaroo team was the largest Australia has fielded to date.
Morgan was one of 37 Skillaroos on the team, and Joshua Seymour, Affil.AIRAH, Australia’s HVAC&R International Expert and Judge for the refrigeration and air conditioning (RAC) category tells HVAC&R News he is “incredibly proud” of Morgan.
“Day one of the competition presented some challenges for Adam and many of the other competitors, but Adam’s determination, resilience and true Aussie spirit shone through for the remainder of the competition,” Seymour says.
“He responded strongly, scoring well across days two, three and four, demonstrating the skill, commitment and professionalism that got him to the world stage. Adam’s Medal of Excellence is extremely well deserved, and his growth throughout this process shows why we need to continue to support the young superstars in our industry to try and achieve skills exellence.”
Working with the other international experts was also a highlight for Seymour, who is also Program Manager – Air Conditioning, Refrigeration & Instrumentation at RMIT.
“(The other experts) all worked well together throughout the competition, ensuring the event was conducted fairly and professionally, meeting the International WorldSkills Standards while giving every competitor the opportunity to demonstrate their skills and knowledge to the crowd of spectators,” he says.
“It was interesting to discuss the different equipment and technologies currently being used in each country and the varying work practices and standards within the refrigeration industries.”
Some other members of the Australian Skillaroo team also achieved outstanding results.
Western Australian apprentice, Lachlan Basc, was awarded a Silver Medal, coming 2nd in the field of 3D Digital Game Art, and Queensland apprentice Lachlan Wright won a Bronze Medal, coming 3rd in Heavy Vehicle Technology.
Other Australian Medal for Excellence recipients were:
- Bailey Lowes (NSW) – Industrial Mechanics
- Aksel Van Gastel-Peck (Vic) – Additive Manufacturing
- Connor Beisler (NSW) – Bakery
- John Ray (NSW) – Health & Social Care
- Rubi Everard (Tas) – Beauty Therapy
- Cooper Thornely (ACT) – Welding
- Archie Wilkinson (NSW) – Plumbing & Heating
- Jason Seiler (WA) – Bricklaying
- Samuel Shedden (NSW) – Car Painting
- Zak Resuggan (Vic) – Cooking
“This is such an incredible result for Australia,” says WorldSkills Australia CEO, Trevor Schwenke.
“Two Medals and 11 Medals for Excellence against the toughest field in WorldSkills history says everything about the calibre of this team, and the work our experts have put in behind the scenes to get them there.
“Every one of our 37 Skillaroos represented Australia with real distinction in Shanghai, medal or not. Watching this team compete, you could see just how much this journey and all the hard work and training they’d put in had prepared them for the big stage.
“This result shows the world what we already know here at home: that Australia’s vocational education and training system produces some of the best young talent anywhere. We couldn’t be prouder of this team.”
Images Courtesy of WorldSkills International via WorldSkills Australia.
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Comments
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Congratulations to Adam on the Medal for Excellence. Placing 6th in Skill 38 against apprentices from more than 70 countries is a serious result, and recovering after a tough first day says a lot about how well he handled the pressure. In a four-day competition where tasks build on each other, bouncing back from early setbacks is often what separates the medal finishers from the rest.
It would be great to see a follow-up piece on what the RAC tasks actually involved this year. From what I understand, the Skill 38 modules typically cover things like brazing and pipework, system commissioning, electrical fault-finding and refrigerant recovery, often with a growing focus on low-GWP and natural refrigerants. Knowing which modules carried the most weight would be really useful for apprentices and TAFE teachers who want to benchmark their own training against international standards.
I also think Joshua Seymour’s comment about supporting young people in the industry deserves attention given the ongoing skills shortage in HVAC&R. A short photo series of Adam’s finished pipework and wiring would be a great teaching resource too; even phone shots cleaned up with an image to image ai editor could make the details clear for students. Are there plans for him to share his preparation with apprentices through AIRAH events or RMIT?
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