Numazu City, Japan – The WorldSkills flag was officially turned over to Canada today before 3,000 spectators at the closing ceremonies of the 39th WorldSkills competition in Japan.

The ceremony, which also saw the unfurling of a massive Canadian flag and a performance by Canadian vocalist Andrea Marino, closed out four days of competition at Shizuoka attended by more than 200,000 spectators. The Exchange Ceremony program was produced by two Canadian companies, PRP. Inc and Fireworks Marketing Group Inc.

The Canadian delegation receiving the WorldSkills flag on behalf of Canada and Calgary, the host city of the 40th international WorldSkills competition included Guy Mallabone, Chair of WorldSkills Calgary 2009, Richard Walker, President and CEO of WorldSkills Calgary 2009, Terry Cooke, President of Skills/Compétences Canada and Shaun Thorson, Executive Director of Skills/Compétences Canada.

"This is a big win for Calgary and for Canada," says Mallabone. "We get to watch tremendous competition among the best young talent in trades and technology while Calgary is showcased to hundreds of thousands of visitors, including policy makers, government representatives, employers, teachers, trainers and experts from around the world."

More than 900 competitors representing 49 countries are expected to compete in 47 skills and technologies events during the competition in Calgary from September 1 – 6, 2009.

The competition will use all available space at Stampede Park, situated on 193 acres with 800,000 square feet of competition space.

"Hosting this competition will have significant economic impact on Calgary," says Mallabone. "We anticipate that about 930 jobs will be created and that the net economic impact will be in excess of $ 81 million."

Over its 50 year history, the WorldSkills competition (formerly known as the Skills Olympics) has come to symbolize the pinnacle of excellence in skilled trades and technologies training. Every two years, hundreds of young competitors from all over the world gather to compete in this international event.

• WorldSkills Calgary 2009 Ltd. is a not-for-profit organization that was established to plan and host the 40th WorldSkills Competition in September 2009.
• The competition will take place from September 1 - 6, 2009, to be held at Calgary Stampede Park.
• 900 competitors from 49 member countries (representing 20 languages) will be participating.
• The organization's mission is to engage the passion of Canada's young people to pursue the trades and technology as viable and rewarding career options.
• Nearly 150,000 spectators and 5,000 experts, delegates and judges from around the world will attend the competition.
• It will require 800,000 square feet of space at Stampede Park.
• The competitors will be housed and fed at the first ever WorldSkills Village located at SAIT Polytechnic.
• Operating budget is $55 million.

• The WorldSkills Competition is the biggest skills competition in the world.
• The first competition was held in 1950 in Madrid, Spain. Canada last hosted the WorldSkills Competition in Montréal in 1999 at the Olympic Stadium.
• Every two years, over 900 competitors from 49 member countries gather to compete in over 40 skill categories ranging from welding, cooking, autobody repair and landscape gardening to beauty care and web design.
• The competition attracts hundreds of thousands of visitors including public policy makers, government representatives, employers, teachers, trainers and experts from around the world.