José Carlos Pérez Lecona, a culinary student from the Mexican Culinary Institute, won the gold medal at the IKA Culinary Olympics 2016, an event that's been celebrated every four years since 1900 in Erfurt, Germany.
José Carlos won the medal for his participation in the Mukimono category, which basically consists of decorating fruit and vegetales through the art of carving and cutting. In this competition, the eight pieces by the Mexican chef consisted of carving a small variety of butternut squash, winning the gold medal for him and the Mexican delegation, which consists of 15 members.
Judges praised José Carlos for his intricate, meticulous and perfectly symmetrical designs and his use of the butternut squash's natural colors to create different effects.
Making it to this event is already an achievement in and of itself, but taking home the highest honor in traditional art form speaks volumes of the 24 year-old chef's dedication, preparation and talent.