At the age of 15, Cloé Lemarechal, the WorldSkills Champions Trust representative for Europe from France, went into a fabric shop that changed her life. As she touched the different fabrics, and saw clothes being made, she fell in love with fashion.

She went on to study for a Vocational Baccalaureate Diploma in Fashion and graduated in fashion from technical college. After that, she obtained a certificate of professional competence in tailoring and a vocational certificate in custom-made clothing for men, and then did an apprenticeship at the prestigious Institut Français de la Mode and at the Zegna’s workshop in Paris.

Her favourite part about her job is making tailor-made clothes, and the fact that every day is different because there are a variety of techniques, a variety of fabrics, and different customers.

Having competed in sports all her life, she joined WorldSkills because she wanted to put her professional skills to the test. She competed at WorldSkills Competition 2022 Special Edition in Helsinki, Finland and was bestowed with the Best of Nation award for France.

Cloé is also the first representative of the WorldSkills Champions Trust to have also competed at Abilympics. Held every four years, this competition provides a platform where young people with disabilities can demonstrate that their disabilities are not an obstacle to professional excellence. At Abilympics Metz 2023, Cloé won the gold medal in Fashion Technology.

“My journey is proof that anything is possible, that visible or invisible disability can be one of the greatest strengths of a Competitor,” said Cloé. She has dyslexia, a disorder that makes reading or recognizing and reproducing written language difficult.

“The word disability is complex in society, but it must be normalized and spoken about. Being dyslexic does not prevent me from doing my job or building projects. We just have to adapt to different situations, which makes us stronger.”

Having experienced competitions at different levels, which she says allowed her to “know herself better,” Cloé wanted to join the WorldSkills Champions Trust and be part of the movement. She would like other young people on the vocational path to live “this unique adventure,” and aims at advocating for the human values behind skills and the WorldSkills movement.

She says the Champions Trust is a way for her to commit to perfecting her English and to be able to communicate with people at all levels.

“The role of a Champions Trust representative is to show the way, to instigate the desire to conquer excellence. But also, to make to demonstrate that it takes a lot of work to get there, because nothing in life is just acquired,” says Cloé.

Cloé Lemarechal has been appointed to serve at the WorldSkills Champions Trust for the term 2023–24.

Meet the rest of the Champions Trust