Regina, Saskatchewan – Six Canadian students received medals for their car painting abilities at the 2025 Skills Canada National Competition in Regina, Saskatchewan on May 31st.
Alice Michaud of New Brunswick won gold in the post-secondary category, while Anika Jones of Alberta claimed silver and Monty Loetkeman of B.C. secured the bronze.
Ontario's Sabrina Armstrong triumphed in the secondary category, beating out second-place finisher Malakai Kameya of B.C. and Brooke Twaddle of Alberta, who came in third.
During the two-day event, which ran from May 29th to 31th at the Regina Exhibition Association Limited District, approximately 500 Canadian apprentices and students competed in more than 40 skill areas for the title of national champion.
Along with around 250 medals, the competitors fought to secure a place on Team Canada for WorldSkills 2026 in Shanghai, China.
As one of WorldSkills car painting experts since 2019, Cecile Bukmeier says the qualification process for joining the national team can be a grueling one.
“[Competitors must be] the highest ranking age-eligible competitor from the national competition. [They] must paint a project, as well as prepping, polishing and colour-matching. We judge them on clearly outlined steps from the manufacturer on how they expect a metal panel to be prepared to paint,” said Bukmeier.
Anika Jones, who won the silver medal in car painting at this year's SCNC competition and will be competing for Canada in Shanghai, says watching Bukmeier's Skills Canada alumni video inspired her to pursue car painting as a career path.
Jones will be competing for Team Canada in car painting at World Skills 2026.
“It feels unreal. I didn’t think I’d make it this far, or ever have this opportunity. It’s truly a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity!” says Jones
Car Painting (Post-Secondary)
Gold: Alice Michaud (New Brunswick)
Silver: Anika Jones (Alberta)
Bronze: Monty Loetkeman
Car Painting (Secondary)
Gold: Sabrina Armstrong (Ontario)
Silver: Malakai Kameya (British Columbia)
Bronze: Brooke Twaddle (Alberta)
