ORGANISER SPEAK:
“The 9th International YoungChef Olympiad is the first major culinary Olympiad post-pandemic anywhere in the world. In 2023,the theme is the UN Sustainable Development Goals. This assumes great significance in light of the India’sG20 Presidency. This is the first time in the history of the event that there is participation in such large numbers. IIHM campuses across the country are eagerly looking forward to hosting this mega culinary competition which will not only inspire young chefs from around the world to do their best but also sensitise them to the critical importance of sustainability in the field of hospitality,” said Borno Bose, chairman, IIHM.
What: IIHM presents International Young Chef Olympiad 2023, in association with The Telegraph
Where: New Delhi, Bangalore, Pune, Goa, Hyderabad, Calcutta
When: January 29 to February 4
Expect: The ninth edition of the bissest cross-country clinary competition is back in its physical form for the first time since the pandemic. A joint initiative of the International Hospitality Council UK and the International Institute of Hotel Management, the calinary extravaganza will see budding chefs from over 50 countries participating. They have been segregated into six different groups to battle it out in six Indian cities. Spanning aweek, each segment of the competition wil be judged by an acclaimed global jury from the culinary world. This year, several new countries are in the fray, inclading Australia,Netherlands, Egypt, Luxembourg, Madagascar, Azerbaljan and Tarzania.
The event is supported by the Ministry of Tourism, the Government of India and 10 state governments. The IMM-YCO global congress on sustainability in hospitality and tourism and the grand opening ceremony will take place at Siri Fort Auditorium in New Delhi. This congress is being organised on the lines of the LiFE (Lifestyle for Environment), announced by the Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi, and will bring together world leaders in sustainable hospitality such as Prof. David Foskett, Aradhana Khowala, CEO of Aptaind Partners, United Kingdom: Anita Mendiratta, special advisor to the secretary general of UNWTO, Michelin starred chef John Wood, Sunjae Sharma, managing director of India and Southwest Asia, Hyatt Hotels Corporation; Puneet Dhawn, senior vice president of India and South Asia, Accor Hotels.
The preliminary round of the first group will be held at IIHM Delhi campus. The remaining groups will participate in the preliminary round at the Goa, Bangalore, Pune and Hyderabad campuses. Four rounds of the last leg of the competition, including the grand finale, will be hosted in Calcutta. The first 10 competitors from round one will compete in the grand finale. Competitors who will bag positions within 11 to 20 will compete for the Plate Trophy and the remaining competitors will take part in the YCO Dr. Suborno Bose Challenge, a newly introduced round in the competition. The contestants will also compete in the United World of Young Chef round to present a national dish with their mentor. The closing ceremony will be held at Wet-O-Wild in Nicco Park.
A 28-member grand jury featuring popular names of the culinary and hospitality world will judge various segments of the event. Chef Sanjeev Kapoor is the event's principal mentor and professor David Foskett is chairman of the CO grand jury. Names of national and international repute from the hospitality industry will be part of the judges' panel such as Enzo Oliveri, John Wood, Sarah Hartnett, Andreas Muller, Shaun Kenworthy, Ranveer Brar, Manjunath Mural, Mario Perera and Gary Maclean. The gold winner from the grand finale round will be awarded a cash prize of US$ 5,000, the Silver winner will bag US$3,000 and the Bronze winner US$2,000.
2023 being the International Year of Millets, the 9th International IIHM Young Chef Olympiad 2023 will also promote millets by putting a spotlight on it, besides the concept of sustainability. The mascot of CO has been unveiled, too. This time it is the Tiger Chef, to inspire all the young aspirants to do their very best in the competition.
