Man Earns Gold Medal In WorldSkills International Competition

Caledonia native Kieron Kohlmann won a gold medal in the automotive technology segment of the WorldSkills Americas competition held in Sao Paulo Brazil earlier this month.

A junior at Ferris State University majoring in automotive engineering, Kohlmann competed in five different areas – engine performance, steering and suspension, brakes, electrical, and engine repair.

“The hardest part at the international level is that all of the judges don’t speak English,” he said.

But Kohlmann, who is a Park High School graduate, got through the competition.

“I got into this because Park has one of the best automotive tech programs in the state,” he said. “…And because my dad is really into cars.”

Each station took 3 ½ hours to complete and included diagnosing problems in cars. The four-day competition is run by Skills USA, a partnership between industry leaders, teachers and industry workers to teach technical education skills to students. Kohlmann was among 11 members of the WorldTeam.

Skills USA runs a regional, state, and national competition every year. Since Kohlmann won the state and national competition, he was chosen to compete in the international competition.

But Kohlmann's not done with competing. He'll now represent the United States at a competition in Leipzig, Germany during the biennial WorldSkills competition in July.