Mikala Sposito has earned a bronze medal in welding at WorldSkills Shanghai 2026. Sposito became the first female welding competitor to represent the United States in WorldSkills history, as well as the first female welding medalist for the United States.

The American Welding Society (AWS) supported Sposito as part of its role in preparing US welding competitors for WorldSkills, also known as the “Olympics of the Skilled Trades.” Through qualifying competitions, technical training, coaching and competition preparation, AWS helps competitors develop the skills and experience needed to represent the United States on the international stage.

“Mikala’s historic achievement at WorldSkills represents far more than earning a bronze medal—it represents what can happen when talent is discovered, potential is nurtured, and opportunity is matched with sheer determination,” stated Carey Chen, AWS CEO and Executive Director. “We are incredibly proud of Mikala and truly honored to have supported her journey. Her success story sends a powerful message to young people everywhere: there is a place for you in welding or other valuable skilled trades, and hard work creates amazing opportunities.”

Early Exposure Sparked a Welding Career

Sposito’s journey began at age 10, when she first discovered welding through the Careers in Welding Mobile Experience during a local Maker Faire. That early introduction sparked an interest that eventually led her to Washtenaw Community College (WCC), national SkillsUSA competitions and, after more than two years of increasingly intense competition and preparation, the WorldSkills stage.

Sposito earned her place on Team USA at the USA Weld Trials in Huntsville, Alabama, in March 2026, finishing first among three finalists. Benjamin Cornaby of Utah State University Eastern placed second, while CJ Parks of West Side Greers Ferry in Arkansas placed third.

The three finalists had advanced through earlier AWS selection events that tested precision, safety, technical execution and craftsmanship while they completed complex, multi-process welding tasks under strict time limits.

Seven Months of Intensive WorldSkills Preparation

After earning her place on Team USA, Sposito began an intensive seven-month preparation schedule that included international competitions and training in Australia, Canada and China, along with countless hours in the WCC welding lab.

“Working alongside America’s rising WorldSkills competitors is an experience that is difficult to capture in words,” said Ray Connolly, WorldSkills Chief Expert, Welding, and 1999 WorldSkills Gold Medalist. “Their exceptional drive, unwavering work ethic, technical skill, and mental resilience set them apart, qualities rarely seen outside the demanding world of WorldSkills preparedness.”

For coaches and instructors, the preparation process provides an opportunity to see months of training translate into competition performance. WorldSkills competitors demonstrate the focus, discipline and determination required to compete at the international level.

WCC Builds on Decades of WorldSkills Experience

Sposito was supported throughout her journey by the AWS WSCC (AWS WorldSkills Competition Committee) and her team at WCC, including mentors, coaches and peers who encouraged her throughout the preparation process. The AWS WSCC team’s commitment and belief in her potential, combined with Sposito’s perseverance, helped create the environment that supported her WorldSkills campaign.

Sposito was coached by WCC welding instructor Alex Pazkowski, who also knows what it takes to reach the WorldSkills podium. Pazkowski represented the United States and WCC at the 2013 WorldSkills Competition in Leipzig, Germany, where he earned a silver medal. Thirteen years later, he coached his student to the podium in Shanghai.

WCC Welding Instructors Carry WorldSkills Legacy Forward

The WorldSkills connection at WCC extends beyond Pazkowski. Welding instructors Glenn Kay and Brad Clink also represented the United States at WorldSkills, competing in 1997 and 2011, respectively.

Together, the instructors bring decades of WorldSkills experience into the WCC welding program and helped prepare Sposito for her own place on the international stage.

More than a decade after Sposito first tried welding, she stood on the WorldSkills podium in Shanghai with a bronze medal around her neck. Her path from discovering welding at age 10 to becoming the first US female welding competitor and medalist at WorldSkills demonstrates the opportunities that can develop when young people are introduced to skilled trades and receive the training, support and competition experience to pursue them at the highest level.