Ryan flies the flag for Shropshire in Rio
The Rio 2016 Olympics may be a year away, but one of Shropshire's brightest young talents has already celebrated medal success on the global stage in Brazil.
Following five days of intense competition against almost 1,000 of the world's most skilled young people – the nation's team of talented apprentices and learners returned from WorldSkills São Paulo 2015 with a haul of eight medals and 25 medallions, including three golds.
Ryan Stevens, 21, from Telford, who studied his Level 3 in brickwork and recently completed his apprenticeship at Shrewsbury College, was among the elite UK team which competed at the event, and was one of the 25 competitors awarded a Medallion of Excellence.
He said: "I am so proud to have been selected to represent the UK. I have worked so hard to perfect my trade. It was an amazing honour and privilege to have been selected and allow me to showcase my skills."
The medals were given to a small group of competitors who demonstrated the attainment of world-class standards in their chosen skill.
In a letter to each competitor, Prime Minister David Cameron was also full of praise for their efforts, describing them as "role models for the next generation of apprentices".
Taking place every two years since its inception in 1950, WorldSkills is the world's largest skills competition.
Ryan started his journey to Brazil when he entered the WorldSkills UK Skills Competitions and competed in national finals held at The Skills Show in Birmingham in 2013 and 2014.
