NEWS
J&W Student Team Brings Home an "Olympic" Medal
By Meredith Moore
More than a year of preparation paid off on October 17, when the Johnson & Wales University Student Culinary Olympic Team received a bronze medal for their display at the IKA International Culinary Art Competition (widely known as the Culinary Olympics) in Erfurt, Germany.
The team included senior Guillaume Bienaime and junior John Paul Carmona from California, junior Michael Finnen from New York, senior Nicholas Manning from Washington, and sophomore Brittany Tanelli from New Jersey. While training for the Culinary Olympics, they entered several regional competitions in the United States, winning each one. They triumphed at the American Culinary Federation national convention in July, taking the Student Team of the Year title.
The team's journey began in May 2003, when they followed a rigorous selection process that was open to students at all campuses; Finnen transferred from Miami to Providence after making the team. The students put in nearly 6,000 practice hours during their journey to the Olympics: 6,000 hours of painstakingly weaving a latticework of carrot and leek strips to wrap around a venison pate studded with slender asparagus shoots; 6,000 hours of dipping each and every element of a salad in aspic glaze three times; 6,000 hours of carefully blowing sugar to create a dancing carousel horse.
Karl Guggenmos, university dean of Culinary Education, founded the Intracollegiate Culinary Competition among Johnson & Wales' campuses in 2002 as a training ground for competing on the international level. Indeed, three of the team members had spots on Intracollegiate teams in 2003. "2004 marked the first time in 16 years that Johnson & Wales University sent a school-sponsored student team to Germany for the Culinary Olympics," he said. "For the students to have received medals — judged along with professionals, no less — is a testament to their skill and dedication."
The students received much guidance from their coaches, who put in countless hours of supervision and suggestions. They included: Culinary Arts Department Chair Joseph Leonardi, Associate Professor George O'Palenick, Special Projects Chef Uta Schepers, Chef Instructor Mark Soliday, Director of Storeroom Operations Gill Stansfield and Chef Instructor Robert Zielinski.
The team also received support from several sponsors, including The Vollrath Company, L.L.C. and Tyson Foods Inc.
