Five TRU trades students take home national awards

KAMLOOPS — Five Thompson Rivers University (TRU) School of Trades and Technology students have won national awards, including two golds, for demonstrating the best talent in their skilled trade.

In a news release issued Friday (June 2), TRU says Hugo Heyes took first-place gold in the plumbing category, while Nolan Ilic and Cole Allan won gold and bronze, respectively, for their welding expertise.

“Our plumber Hugo, and all the other TRU competitors did amazingly well,” Audrey Curran, TRU plumbing instructor says. “Anyone brave enough to put themselves out there for these competitions should be very proud of themselves.”

Hugo Heyes (centre) wins gold in the plumbing category (Image credit: TRU/Contributed).

(Left to right) Bronze medal winner Cole Allan, TRU welding instructor Larry Franzen and gold medal winner Nolan Ilic (Image credit: TRU/Contributed).

Elsewhere, Matthew Lavigne (post-secondary level) and Logan Jones (secondary level) each earned silver for their carpentry skills.

The awards were given out at the 2023 Skills Canada National Competition (SCNC) in Winnipeg in late May. Each year, more than 500 competitors from across Canada compete for the title of national champion in over 40 skill areas.