Team Canada takes fourth place at World Culinary Olympics

Oct. 22, 2012, Edmonton – Team Canada placed fourth overall in a field of 35 national teams at the IKA World Culinary
Olympics in Erfurt, Germany, which was held from Oct. 5-10.

Oct. 22, 2012, Edmonton – Culinary Team Canada recently won gold in the Restaurant of Nations Hot Kitchen competition (one of only four teams) and Silver in the Cold Platter Display Table competition (with only one Gold awarded). That earned the team fourth place overall in a field of 35 national teams at the IKA World Culinary Olympics in Erfurt, Germany, which was held from Oct. 5-10.

Team Canada was the top non–Western European team — high commendation given the Western European legacy of this competition, which has grown into the culinary world’s largest and most traditional international competition.

The team’s medals and fourth-place win become more impressive in light of a little-known fact: In August, two member — including the pastry chef — unexpectedly said they couldn’t go to the competition. "That’s a very tough situation to be in after a year and a half of practicing together," says Simon Smotkowicz, the team's business manager.

"Fortunately, a support team member and a new pastry chef stepped in, and the whole team just dug in and worked really hard. It says a lot about the talent and character of the chefs on this team that they could rise to this kind of challenge."

Members of the team, including the first female pastry chef to be part of a Canadian national team, are:

Captain Brad Horen, Manteo Resort Waterfront Hotel & Villas, Kelowna, B.C.

Chef Members
Poyan Danesh, Ocean Mama Seafood, Vancouver
Peter Dewar, Nova Scotia Community College, Kentville, N.S.
Patrick Gayler, Inn at Laurel Point, Victoria
Jeffrey Young, Browns Restaurant Group, Vancouver

Pastry Chef Jennifer Stang, Shaw Conference Centre, Edmonton

Simon Smotkowicz, business manager, Shaw Conference Centre, Edmonton

Support
Roger Andrews, College of the North Atlantic, St. John’s
Serge Belair, Shaw Conference Centre, Edmonton
Ilynna Lam, Shaw Conference Centre, Edmonton