Students from the Department of Hospitality Management, STUST, recently participated in the 2024 Chinese Olympic Cup Culinary Arts and Aesthetics Competition. This year, the competition had participants from 25 countries, with a number of contestants in various categories reaching more than 2,000. As expected, STUST won 6 gold medals and 2 silver medals altogether in the baking art project, the floral decoration cake category, western-style exquisite plate decoration dessert category, painted macaron category, shaped macaron category, and biscuit product creative design category. Students from the Department of Hospitality and Tourism demonstrated their practical as well as skills teaching achievements of the teachers.

【Prof. Zheng-sheng Lin (left) of the Department of Hospitality Management, STUST, had a photo with the gold-medal winning student Yi-han Shu (right) in the 2024 Chinese Olympic Cup Culinary Art Aesthetics Competition.】

Yi-han Shu, a freshman student in the Department of Hospitality Management, was enrolled via the Fanshing System and had ranked first in her class in high school. She was not familiar with baking at first, but as she met Prof. Zheng-sheng Lin at a baking event at STUST, she chose this path right away. Shu really invested a lot of time in professional skills to make up for the catering skills that she did not learn in high school. She was always the last to leave when practicing in the classroom, and her basic skills gradually became more and more solid before she won the western-style exquisite plate dessert category in this competition. The gold medal proves that the child who is the best at reading can also get the gold medal in baking skills. She deserves the prize she won.

【Yi-rong Li from the Department of Hospitality Management, STUST, won the gold medal in the Painted Macaron Category of the 2024 Chinese Olympic Cup Culinary Arts and Aesthetics Competition."】

Yi-rong Li, a freshman student in the evening program of the Department of Hospitality Management, won two gold medals in this competition. The winning macaron work was presented in the shape of Taiwanese culture of picnic. Yi-rong Li works in the industry five days a week and studies at school for two days. In fact, there is no extra time to study technology. As there was not sufficient time, it is indeed a big challenge for the instructor to communicate and discuss the works with students who have jobs.

【Student Yi-rong Li from the Department of Hospitality Management, STUST, won the gold medal of the Macaron Style Category in the 2024 Chinese Olympic Cup Culinary Arts and Aesthetics Competition."】

Jia-sheng Yeh, Chair of the Department of Hospitality Management at STUST, said that after years of intensive development in the field of baking, baking contestants have performed well since the establishment of the department. STUST students can learn the basic practical skills and tastes valued in the industry in the department, including design matching, artistic aesthetic skills, creativity in using ingredients, composition and color matching skills, and various details of product design and packaging. The key factor to the contestants’ winning of 6 gold medals was that Prof. Zheng-sheng Lin used his rich experience as a chef in the industry to provide students with professional guidance, training, and independent learning, which is important for students to break through their creative ideas. In addition, the department advocates teamwork to achieve mutual aid, allowing students to get help from teachers and solutions at critical moments. It also allows students to break through bottlenecks and hone their ability to withstand pressure and react on the spot to face dynamic and static situations of the competition.

【Jia-lin Guo, a student from the Department of Hospitality Management, STUST, won the gold medal of the Biscuit Product Creative Design Category in the 2024 Chinese Olympic Cup Culinary Art and Aesthetics Competition.】

【Yi-jing Zhuang from the Department of Hospitality Management, STUST, won the gold medal of the Biscuit Product Creative Design Category in the "2024 Chinese Olympic Cup Culinary Arts and Aesthetics Competition.】

【Hong-yu Chen from the Department of Hospitality Management, STUST, won the gold medal of Flower Decoration Cake Category in the 2024 Chinese Olympic Cup Culinary Arts and Aesthetics Competition.】

【Students from the Department of Hospitality Management, STUST, practice basic skills in the baking classroom every day.】

【Students from the Department of Hospitality Management, STUST, practice basic skills in the baking classroom every day.】

【Students from the Department of Hospitality Management, STUST, practice basic skills in the baking classroom every day.】

【Students from the Department of Hospitality Management, STUST, practice basic skills in the baking classroom every day.】