Laois competitor to represent Ireland at the ‘Skills Olympics' in China
23-year-old Ruán Murgatroyd from Portarlington will take part in the prestigious international competition
A young Laois man is set to represent Ireland at WorldSkills Shanghai later this month. 23-year-old Ruán Murgatroyd from Portarlington will take part in the prestigious international competition, often referred to as the ‘Skills Olympics’, from September 22 to 27.WorldSkills Shanghai will bring together more than 1,400 competitors from over 70 countries and regions across 64 different skill areas. Ruán, who will compete in Cloud Computing, is one of 16 young Irish competitors selected to represent Team Ireland.
Before heading to China, Ruán will also be among the Irish talent showcased at WorldSkills Ireland 2026, which returns to RDS Simmonscourt from September 16 to 18. For a select group of Ireland’s most talented young competitors, the RDS event marks another important milestone on their road to Shanghai.
The three-day event at the RDS will bring together young people from across Ireland to experience the breadth of skills and career opportunities available through apprenticeships, further education and training. The event will feature 31 live national competition finals, alongside interactive Try-A-Skill areas, career and educator zones and inspirational talks.
Speaking on the benefits of WorldSkills Ireland to his career, Ruán said “Most computer scientists become developers without ever learning how the code they write is deployed. This skill and competition helps me break into the cloud computing side of technology”.
Encouraged from a young age to explore technology by his father, Ruán developed his passion for computing and has competed in remote friendly skills competitions in Australia and Hungary along with in-person competitions in Korea and Ireland.
For Ruán and those competing in Shanghai, the journey began long before stepping onto the international stage, with competitors undertaking intensive preparation and honing their skills against some of the best young talent in Ireland.
Ray English, Chair of WorldSkills Ireland, said “Skills and apprenticeships are fundamental to Ireland’s future. They power our economy, strengthen industry and open doors to rewarding careers. WorldSkills Ireland shows young people that practical and technical skills are not a second choice, they are a first-choice route to success”.
With WorldSkills Ireland taking place just days before the international competition, visitors to the RDS will have the opportunity to see Ireland’s future skilled workforce in action, discover different career pathways and get hands-on with a wide range of skills.
Michael Hourihan, WorldSkills Ireland Technical Delegate, said “The event at the RDS showcases that the future can be very bright for those that choose the apprenticeship route to education and gainful employment”.