Czech Gas Fitter of the Year 2026 competition kicks off with school rounds in Brno and Znojmo

The Gas Fitter of the Year 2026 secondary-school competition kicked off this October with its first school rounds. The teams advancing to the international final are students Martin Beránek and Ondřej Černý from the Secondary School of Building Crafts in Brno-Bosonohy, and Matouš Stojan and Štěpán Šmíd from the Secondary Technical School in Znojmo-Uhlárka. The competition aims to recognize the most talented students in gas engineering and related fields, showcase study opportunities to the public, and promote the Czech gas industry at a time when interest in gas is growing.

Gas Fitter of the Year is an international secondary-school competition. Teams of two students compete in theoretical knowledge and practical skills. The final round is held every spring at the Brno Building Fair, as part of Masters of Everyday Life, a multi-trade Czech championship for students of the crafts. In the coming weeks, more teams will advance to the final from a total of nine Czech secondary schools and one Slovak school.

“The Czech energy sector cannot do without a new generation of gas fitters, so studying gas engineering is a very smart choice with strong prospects. The competition gives us a chance to recognize the greatest talents,” says Petr Zajíček, director of specialist works at the GasNet Group, the competition’s general partner.

“Gas engineering has a future and is experiencing a renaissance. We expect gas consumption to grow by more than 18 TWh by 2030, driven solely by the transition of large energy sources from coal to gas. We are already working with renewable gases, such as biomethane, and in the future, hydrogen. New generations of gas engineers will therefore continue to play a key role in the Czech energy sector,” Petr Zajíček adds.

Last year’s competition broke with convention when a girl reached the final for the first time in its history: Barbora Svobodová, a student of gas equipment mechanics from Brno. Together with her classmate Denis Sobotka, she went on to win the Gas Fitter of the Year 2025 title.

The competition could not take place without the support of partners who help ensure its professional standards and recognize talented students: The GasNet Group is the general partner. GasNet The partner of the Brno school round was Metrostav, while the partner of the Znojmo round was Moravský Plynostav. Other partners include MONTGAS, GLUMBÍK, Výstavba sítí Kolín, Gas Storage CZ, NET4GAS, PROCKERT & HYNEK, and Pražská plynárenská Servis distribuce. The competition is supported by the Czech Gas Association and the GAS organization.

More information about studying gas engineering is available at gasnet.jobs.cz/studuj-plynarinu.