Norway Wins the 2008 Culinary Olympics
   Click here for medal count / results
Source: WACS Juniors @ blogspot.com
Germany Junior National Teams Wins Culinary Olympics IKA 2008
Click here for medal count / results
Source: WACS Juniors @ blogspot.com
Resilient Welsh Chefs Receive Silver Medals At Culinary Olympics
Chefs from the Welsh National Culinary Team were presented with their two silver medals at the Culinary Olympics in Germany yesterday.
The medals were a just reward for the team, which overcame a series of obstacles to achieve its best ever result at the Olympics, the premier competition for chefs around the globe. Team manager Graham Tinsley said the Welsh chefs were "chuffed to bits" with the result.
"When you see other top teams, like defending Olympic champions Sweden and Singapore, also winning silver medals, it puts our result into perspective," he said. "This is my fourth Culinary Olympics and the best we had done previously was bronze medals, so it's a fantastic achievement against all the odds this time."
Their first silver came in the hot kitchen element of the competition on Sunday, when they produced 110 covers of a three-course meal. The second silver followed on Tuesday in the cold platter show, which entailed creating a range dishes, including appetizers, main courses, complete menus, desserts, cakes and showpieces, for a table display on a weddings theme.
The Welsh team (pictured) comprises (from left) manager Graham Tinsley, co-owner of the Castle Hotel, Conwy and Nant Hall, Prestatyn, Sally Owens, a tutor at Coleg Llandrillo Cymru, Rhos on Sea, captain Wayne Roberts, head chef Portmeirion Hotel, Lee Jeynes, group development chef for English Lake Hotels, Dave Kelman, of Lower Slaughter Manor, Stow-on-the-Wold, Toby Beevers, freelance.
The support team included Gennaro Adaggio of La Dolce Vita, Shrewsbury, Tom Middleton, of Hotel Maes-y-neuadd, Talsarnau, Harlech, Chris Owen, Castle Hotel, Conwy, Kevin Williams, a tutor at Coleg Meirion Dwyfor and Mark Jones, chef at Henbury Hall, Macclesfield.
The Welsh National Culinary Team is sponsored by the Welsh Assembly Government, C&C Catering Equipment Ltd, Brakes, Unilever Foodsolutions UK, Hybu Cig Cymru/ Meat Promotion Wales, Gourmet Classic Ltd, Villeroy and Boch, Friedr. Dick, Germany, Metcalfe Catering, All Clad and S. A. Brain and Co.
For more information please contact Graham Tinsley, Welsh National Culinary Team manager, on 07765 404950 or Duncan Foulkes, public relations consultant, on 01686 650818.
Source: The Welsh Culinary Association
Japan Juniors Win Gold
For their very first international appearance, the Japanese National Junior Team has taken Gold in the Cold Table Display at the Culinary Olympics IKA 2008.
This is the first time any Japanese Team has won a Gold Medal for Cold Table at the Culinary Olimpics.
"We are thrilled beyond all expectations for the Junior Team as they are young and not very experienced for this level of competition but clearly they have risen to meet the challenge."
Alan Orreal - Team Advisor
The Japanese Junior Team has also won itself a Silver Medal for Hot Kitchen on Day One of the competition.
Source: WACS Juniors @ blogspot.com
Silver Lining For Resilient Welsh Chefs At Culinary Olympics
The Welsh National Culinary Team has won a second silver medal at the Culinary Olympics in Germany, the premier competition for chefs around the globe.
Team manager Graham Tinsley, who had optimistically set the chefs a target of winning two silver medals before leaving for Erfurt last week, admitted he was "chuffed to bits" with the result.
"When you see other top teams, like defending Olympic champions Sweden and Singapore, also winning silver medals, it puts our result into perspective," he said. "This is my fourth Culinary Olympics and the best we had done previously was bronze medals, so it's a fantastic achievement against all the odds this time."
Their first silver came in the hot kitchen element of the competition on Sunday, when they produced 110 covers of a three-course meal. The second silver followed on Tuesday in the cold platter show, which entailed creating a range dishes, including appetizers, main courses, complete menus, desserts, cakes and showpieces, for a table display on a weddings theme.
However, the resilient Welsh chefs had to overcome a catalogue of problems to win their silver medals. First there was the loss of £15,000 sponsorship, which prevented Wales from taking a team of junior chefs, then two senior chefs withdrew because of work commitments just a couple of days before the team was due to leave for Germany.
The problems continued when a ferry strike delayed a lorry carrying the team's food and equipment, then chef Chris Owen from the Castle Hotel, Conwy was held up for a day because his passport was inside a knifebox on the team lorry.
The lorry was forced to divert to Cologne airport where a courier was waiting to fly the passport to Manchester to meet up with Owen on Friday morning. The young chef flew to Frankfurt before catching a train to Erfurt to finally join up with the team.
The problems did not end there, however. The tailgate on the team's lorry developed a fault when it arrived in Germany, making it difficult to load and unload heavy items. The lorry was not repaired until 6pm on Monday night, which prevented the chefs from transporting the display tables to the competition venue the night before they were due to compete.
The result was that they had to erect the tables and arrange the display and dishes in just two hours on Tuesday morning. To add to the team's problems, pastry chef Toby Beevers was bed-bound with flu on Tuesday.
"It was all a rush on Tuesday morning and we made a couple of stupid mistakes, which may have cost us a gold medal, " explained Tinsley, co-owner of the Castle Hotel, Conwy and Nant Hall, Prestatyn. "After all the obstacles that we have had to overcome, I think I should write a book."
The chefs will receive their medals tomorrow (Thursday). The Welsh team comprises Tinsley, captain Wayne Roberts, head chef Portmeirion Hotel, Lee Jeynes, group development chef for English Lake Hotels, Dave Kelman, of Lower Slaughter Manor, Stow-on-the-Wold, Toby Beevers, freelance and Sally Owens, a tutor at Coleg Llandrillo Cymru, Rhos on Sea.
The support team includes Gennaro Adaggio of La Dolce Vita, Shrewsbury, Tom Middleton, of Hotel Maes-y-neuadd, Talsarnau, Harlech, Chris Owen, Kevin Williams and Mark Jones.
The Welsh National Culinary Team is sponsored by the Welsh Assembly Government, C&C Catering Equipment Ltd, Brakes, Unilever Foodsolutions UK, Hybu Cig Cymru/ Meat Promotion Wales, Gourmet Classic Ltd, Villeroy and Boch, Friedr. Dick, Germany, Metcalfe Catering, All Clad and S. A. Brain and Co.
Picture caption:
Welsh National Culinary Team manager Graham Tinsley.
For more information please contact Graham Tinsley, Welsh National Culinary Team manager, on 07765 404950 or Duncan Foulkes, public relations consultant, on 01686 650818.
Source: The Welsh Culinary Association
Singapore Team Takes Gold in Hot Cooking
Dear All,
Singapore Team as we know have taken Gold in Hot Cooking.
Today we have received 2 Gold & 1 Silver for the Cold Table.
We now have to wait to see how the points will balance for the prize giving.
Here hoping we are in the frame for the top 3 positions.
- John Sloane
First Gold Medal For Egypt
Chef Mohamed El Saadawy Wins Gold At Ika 2008
This news just in from Erfurt Germany: Chef Mohamed El Saadawy, Semiramis InterContinental, has won a Gold Medal in Category A: Culinary Arts. This is the first Gold Medal for Egypt at the Erfurt IKA Culinary Olympics. Congratulations!!
Source: The Egyptian Chefs Association
Resilient Welsh Chefs Cook Up Olympic Silver Medals
A resilient team of Welsh chefs has overcome a catalogue of problems to win a silver medal at the Culinary Olympics in Germany.
Graham Tinsley, manager of the Welsh National Culinary Team, was delighted by the silver medal in the hot kitchen element of the competition, which was the target he set for the chefs before leaving Wales last week.
Now he's hoping for a similar result in the second and final part of the competition, the cold platter show tomorrow (Tuesday), when the chefs will create a range dishes including appetizers, main courses, complete menus, desserts, cakes and showpieces for a table display with a weddings theme.
"This is the fourth time we have competed at the Culinary Olympics and a silver medal is the team's best ever result," said Tinsley, co-owner of the Castle Hotel, Conwy and Nant Hall, Prestatyn. "The hot kitchen went really well and the silver medal was a great reward for our efforts.
"We have yet to receive the debriefing to discover how far off we were from winning a gold medal."
Now the team is racing against the clock for the cold platter show, with the chefs expecting to work through the night to get the dishes ready for transport at 5am tomorrow.
"It's very tiring work because we have managed on average only three hours sleep a night since we arrived on Friday. Considering all the obstacles that we have had to overcome, we have done fantastically well."
The catalogue of problems has included the late withdrawal of two senior chefs, a ferry strike that delayed a lorry carrying the team's food and equipment and the delayed arrival of chef Chris Owen from the Castle Hotel, Conwy whose passport was mistakenly put inside his knifebox on the team lorry.
The lorry was forced to divert to Cologne airport where a courier was waiting to fly the passport to Manchester to meet up with Owen on Friday morning. The young chef then flew to Frankfurt before catching a train to Erfurt to finally join up with the team.
The problems did not end there, however. Since arriving in Erfurt, the tailgate on the team's lorry has developed a fault, making it difficult to unload heavy items. The team hopes the lorry will be repaired by a hydraulics specialist this afternoon (Monday) ready to transport the display to Erfurt tomorrow.
The Welsh team comprises Tinsley, captain Wayne Roberts, head chef Portmeirion Hotel, Lee Jeynes, group development chef for English Lake Hotels, Dave Kelman, of Lower Slaughter Manor, Stow-on-the-Wold, Toby Beevers, freelance and Sally Owens, a tutor at Coleg Llandrillo Cymru, Rhos on Sea.
The support team includes Gennaro Adaggio of La Dolce Vita, Shrewsbury, Tom Middleton, of Hotel Maes-y-neuadd, Talsarnau, Harlech, Chris Owen, Kevin Williams and Mark Jones.
The Welsh National Culinary Team is sponsored by the Welsh Assembly Government, C&C Catering Equipment Ltd, Brakes, Unilever Foodsolutions UK, Hybu Cig Cymru/ Meat Promotion Wales, Gourmet Classic Ltd, Villeroy and Boch, Friedr. Dick, Germany, Metcalfe Catering, All Clad and S. A. Brain and Co.
Source: The Welsh Culinary Association
A very unique and colourful cable car was presented as an "appetiser" for the 22nd IKA /Culinary Olympics 2008 in Erfurt
Erfurt/Frankfurt am Main. Erfurt in Germany is awaiting its guests for next year's 22nd IKA / Culinary Olympics.  From October 18 to 22, 2008, the world's best chefs and pastry chefs will gather in Erfurt to show their expertise and know-how in culinary arts. The international four-day competition which takes place only every four years is considered the most important event in this field. And while the hosting German Chefs Association is looking forward to welcoming colleagues from more than 35 countries, an extraordinary city promotion was kicked off.
Erfurt, middle of December, right on the historical Domplatz of the capital of Thuringia: A very special tram was launched in the presence of several members of the press, delegates of the organising committees as well as the local chefs association and the Erfurter Gastro Berufsbildungswerk which also serves as a Culinary Olympics sponsor.
 Painted in the fancy colours of the Culinary Olmpics and decorated with significant logos, friendly faces and useful facts this tram is a very unique advertising media. From now on it will stroll around Erfurt, well recognised by the public, und tells everyone what will be happening next year. Following the motto of the 22nd IKA / Culinary Olympics "Cooking without barriers. Come, see, wonder and taste".
In less than one year Erfurt in Germany will turn into the centre of culinary creations and competitive spirit. The "Olympic tram" is already there and gives all citizens and visitors of Erfurt a nice appetite bite for the spectacular event in October 2008.
Welcome to the home of the IKA / Culinary Olympics: Come, see and take the tram!
Source: Official IKA Culinary Olympics website |
