WorldSkills Shanghai: Smriti Nambiar bags silver, Best of Nation award

India won six silver medals at WorldSkills Shanghai 2026, with baker Smriti Nambiar also earning the Best of Nation award. Here's who the winners are, what they achieved and why India's performance marks a milestone for its skilled youth.

Indian baker Smriti Nambiar has won a silver medal in the Bakery category at the WorldSkills Shanghai 2026, placing her among the top performers in one of the world's biggest competitions for vocational and technical skills, ANI reported.

Nambiar's performance was also recognised with the prestigious 'Best of the Nation' award for India.

"It feels great… I just found out about the Best of the Nation award and the fact that I won it. I got the silver medal as well as this… I am very grateful to everyone: my mentor, my family, my parents, all the chefs I've worked with. It's because of them that I was able to achieve this," Nambiar told ANI after her win.

What did Smriti Nambiar win?

Nambiar won silver in Bakery, with China taking gold and Chinese Taipei winning bronze in the category.

Her medal was one of six silver medals won by India at WorldSkills Shanghai 2026. The other Indian silver medallists competed in Dental Prosthetics, Digital Interactive Media Design, Industrial Design Technology, Logistics and Freight Forwarding, and Retail Sales.

Nambiar was also named India's 'Best of the Nation' competitor at the competition.

Why is her WorldSkills silver a big achievement?

WorldSkills is an international platform where young professionals compete against peers from across the world in technical and vocational skills.

The Shanghai edition brought together more than 1,400 competitors from around 70 countries and regions. India sent its largest-ever contingent of 70 competitors across 63 skills, spanning areas including advanced manufacturing, engineering, digital technology, creative industries and specialised services.

India finished 10th overall, winning six silver medals and 20 Medals for Excellence. The result also marked an improvement over India's performance at WorldSkills Lyon 2024, where the country finished 13th with four bronze medals and 12 Medals for Excellence.

Other medal winners from India

India's other silver-medal winners at WorldSkills Shanghai 2026 were Mohammed Salam in Dental Prosthetics, Kovid Ajay Gangrade in Digital Interactive Media Design, Parth Vohra in Industrial Design Technology, Mehrunissa Begum in Logistics and Freight Forwarding, and Saniya Joshi in Retail Sales.

Building on its 13th-place finish at WorldSkills Lyon 2024, where India won four Bronze Medals and 12 Medals for Excellence, the latest performance marks a significant milestone for the country’s skilled youth on the global stage.

India’s participation at WorldSkills Shanghai 2026 was coordinated by the National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) under the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE), with support from Sector Skill Councils, industry partners, training institutions, technical experts and other stakeholders.

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