Team Canada in Leipzig Germany on the first day of the WorldSkills 2013 Competition (Photo: Skills Canada)

LEIPZIG, Germany  With a four day competition in the books, Skills Canadas team has taken the podium at the closing ceremony of World Skills Leipzig 2013 to be recognized for their achievements.

Team Canadas Michael Scheideman won gold in the Heating and Refrigeration category, and the team was was awarded 14 Medallions of Excellence. Scheideman, from Grand Prairie, Alberta, also won the Best of Nation award.

The team was made up of 27 male and 8 female competitors, who ranged in age from 17 to 22.

RELATED: Q+A with the CEO of Skills Canada

Preparing for World Skills Leipzig 2013 has required months of training, hard work and dedication by the 35 young members who make up WorldSkills Team Canada 2013, said Shaun Thorson, Chief Executive Officer, Skills/Compétences Canada.

We are exceptionally proud of their outstanding performance and look forward to seeing their careers flourish.

Diane Finley, Minister of Human Resources and Skills Development also offered congratulations to Team Canada.

Youve proven to be the best in our country. I am personally very proud that you are representing Canada on the world stage. We need young people like you, who excel in your field, to bring your talent into the workforce, she stated.

The trades, technologies and service industries are growing. And we need to keep up with that growth We want to encourage even more young people to learn a trade whether its carpentry, cooking or Web design and bring those skills to the job market.

World Skills Leipzig 2013 was Canadas twelfth participation in a World Skills Competition.

The competitions are held biennially, and bring together the worlds top young skilled trades and technology competitors. This years edition hosted more than 1,000 competitors from 53 Member countries/regions, making it the largest of its kind.