Pune, January 24, 2025: The 11th edition of the Young Chef Olympiad (YCO) the World’s largest culinary competition for student chefs, will yet again be a celebration of unity, solidarity and sustainability through food, which has historically built bridges of friendship among culturally diverse nations.

The week-long, (Feb 2 to February 8, 2025), YCO 2025, features an action-packed timetable for the ‘Young Culinary Olympians’ as well as the mentors. It is held under the aegis of the International Institute of Hotel Management (IIHM) in partnership with the International Hospitality Council (IHC) London. The contestants will undertake two rounds of culinary challenges in their quest to win the coveted YCO 2025 Champion Trophy and a validation of their skills by globally renowned experts from the food and hospitality industry.

But this year’s YCO leapfrogs into a new and permanent universe of integrating artificial intelligence with hospitality and hospitality education. This actually enhances the human aspect of hospitality by increasing efficiency and gaining time for hospitality professionals to do what they do best- enhance guest experiences through human touch.

A book on the A to Z of AI in hospitality and tourism will be launched during the opening of the YCO in Goa, with 50 countries signing a declaration to promote, integrate and assimilate AI from institutions to hotels and beyond

Speaking to the media in Pune, Dr Suborno Bose, the CEO of International Hospitality Council (IHC) and Founder YCO, and Chairman IIHM said, “The intersection of Artificial Intelligence and the hospitality industry is not only the future but the present. The book is not just a guide; it is a present-day reality and a vision for the future. From personalized guest interactions to operational efficiencies, AI is revolutionizing every facet of the hospitality business, making hospitality intelligent, thereby allowing it to be more humane.”

Talking about YCO 2025, Dr Suborno Bose, said, “Through the course of 11 years, the Young Chef Olympiad has grown from strength to strength and has taken on many worthy causes starting from unity in diversity to the UN Sustainability Development Goals and to the promotion of Millets. Through the immersive experience of the Olympiad, we aim to dismantle barriers and cultivate an environment where dialogue flourishes and friendship blossoms.”

The competition rounds will start, at the IIHM campus kitchens, from Feb 3, in Goa, and from Feb 4 in Delhi, Pune, Hyderabad and Bengaluru. The top 10 ‘Olympians’ as per the scores of the two rounds will compete in the Grand Finale of YCO 2025 in Kolkata on February 8, 2025.

The Plate Trophy will also be held a day earlier on Feb 7 wherein the contestants holding positions 11 to 20 in the first round will compete, while the Dr Suborno Bose Challenge will be held on Feb 6.

A Galaxy of Stars: The Judges of YCO 2025
As in previous years Padma Shri Chef Sanjeev Kapoor will be the Principal Judge and Mentor for YCO 2025 while Prof David Foskett OBE, the legendary hospitality educator and author is Chairman of the Jury. The judging panel includes internationally acclaimed celebrity chef judges including Chief Judge Chef John Wood, a Michelin Star Chef and Founder of KitchenCUT.

In each of the competition’s rounds, the contestants will be judged on their basic skills, innovation and creativity. Besides, judges will also mark on the cooking technique, along with portioning, presentation, colour and finish of the dishes.

On Feb 4, 2025, Pune will host students from Azerbaijan, Scotland, Egypt, Mauritius, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Netherlands, Lesotho, Italy and Bangladesh.

Judges in Pune will be Chef Henry Brosi (Lead Judge), Executive Head Chef, Lansdowne Club; Chef Andrew Mackenzie, Executive Chef, Exclusive Chefs Academy, Executive Collection; Chef Suvir Sharan, Celebrity Chef, Restaurateur and Author; Chef Magdala Caussimon, – Professor at Albert de Munn Paris; Chef Stephen Carter, Executive Chef at Boodles.
The Round 1 Director in Pune, will be Mr Neil Rippington – International Director, Global Education, International Institute of Hotel Management.

Showcasing the multicultural culinary diversity of different countries, YCO 2025 will also bring together the student chefs and chef mentors for the “United World of Young Chefs”. There will be World Cuisine display by the 10 participating countries at Pune & Food festival organized by IIHM Pune in partnership with Venue Partner Radisson Blu Kharadi, Pune on 3rd February 2025.

“This year an additional elimination round was the Young Chef India (YCI) round which saw participation from students from hotel management institutes across the country. We are proud that the winner of the YCI 2025 is Aliakbar Rampurawala from Bengaluru,” apprised by Mr Abdullah Ahmed, COO, International Institute of Hotel Management.

The Olympiad will conclude on February 8 with a closing ceremony, in Kolkata, where the YCO 2025 Champion, runners-up, Plate Trophy winner and Dr Bose Challenge winner along with other awardees will be announced.