A local autobody painter and student at the Northern Alberta Institute of Technology has placed 17th in the world in what some call the Olympics of trades and technology. Anika Jones competed in the car painting category at WorldSkills 2026 in Shanghai, representing Canada. This was the first time a female NAIT student competed in the WorldSkills competition for autobody painting. Around 70 countries were represented in WorldSkills in skills like plumbing, welding, carpentry and cloud computing. Alberta sent 12 competitors in aerospace technology, automobile technology, cabinet making, car painting, carpentry, computer numerical control machining, electrical installations, heavy vehicle technology, industrial mechanics, plumbing, web technologies and welding. The 21-year-old previously placed second at the Skills Canada National Competition in Regina last year. The national competition was a timed event where groups of three or four prepped, polished and painted a car panel while doing small damage repairs over two days. The work was then judged by industry professionals. With files from CTV News Edmonton’s Amanda Anderson
