Two Aussies in Caterpillar Global Operator Challenge world finals

After two rounds of putting their heavy machinery and technology skills to the test, nine out of 5500 operators have successfully made it to the final round of Caterpillar’s Global Operator Challenge, with two of the nine finalists hailing from Australia.

The final round of competition will take place inside Caterpillar’s outdoor Festival Grounds exhibit F4455 at the upcoming construction trade expo, CONEXPO-CON/AGG, that will be held from March 14 to 18.

The finals will determine the world’s best equipment operator through various challenges showcasing the ability to operate Cat equipment safely and efficiently.

“This competition started with thousands of operators from different industries registering for the challenge,” said Jessica Nunley, Global Marketing Manager for Caterpillar.

“After narrowing down the contestants to just 5500 participants in the first round hosted by Cat dealers around the world, 84 semifinalists advanced to our regional competitions held at Caterpillar sites in Europe, North America, South America and Asia.

“We are excited to challenge the skills of the nine finalists left standing and crowning this year’s Global Operator Challenge Champion.”

To make the finals even more interesting, the three challenges and the machines involved will not be revealed to the finalists until just two days before the event.

Jaus Neigum, the 2020 World Champion, helped design one of the challenges for this year’s finals which he said will put every operator’s skills to the test.

Representing Australia at the finals will be Patrick Doheny from Melbourne and Nick Thompson from South Australia, who both dominated at the Asia Pacific semifinals held in Chichibu, Japan, in October last year.

Both operators have a combined 40 years of earthmoving operating experience under their belts, proving they are ones to beat.

The finalists for the 2023 Caterpillar Global Operator Challenge are:

Representing Europe:

Representing Americas:

Representing Asia-Pacific:

“These nine finalists have proven to be among the top performing equipment operators not only in their region but in the world,” said Matt Smith, Global Marketing Manager for Caterpillar. “The competition will be the ultimate test of their ability to master any of our machines and technology.”

To advance to the final round of competition, these finalists have executed a range of tasks using a variety of Cat equipment.

Competitions have included digging trenches to targeted depths, hitting target material loads, and hauling or maneouvring the equipment through a variety of obstacles. The final round will be the ultimate test of their precision, as scoring is based on the operator’s skills, efficiency, and competence in using integrated technology to enhance the machine’s performance.

“We want spectators from all over the world to watch the final competition during CONEXPO-CON/AGG in Las Vegas,” Nunley said.

“In addition to being able to attend in-person, we will be livestreaming the competition on our website from start to finish, as well as providing updates and sharing the operators’ machine expertise on our social media platforms.”

The 2023 Caterpillar Global Operator Challenge will be held on Tuesday March 14 at Caterpillar’s exhibit at the CONEXPO-CON/AGG at the Las Vegas Festival Grounds, from 9am to 4pm PDT (Wednesday March 15, 4am to 12pm AEDT)

Spectators can follow the action during the competition on Caterpillar’s livestream page or via Caterpillar Australia's Facebook page.

The winner will be crowned at 3pm PDT during the live event on Tuesday (10am AEDT Wednesday, March 15), and will receive an all-expense-paid trip for two to one Caterpillar location worldwide.