IDEAL Industries, a family-owned business that designs and manufactures products for the professional trades, and Intersport, an independent award-winning marketing agency headquartered in Chicago, announced the expansion of the popular Elite Trades Championship Series platform with the addition of the inaugural Plumbing National Championship. The event aims to celebrate and showcase the exceptional skills of plumbers across the country and builds on the success of the other platforms in the Elite Trades Championship Series, which includes the ServiceTitan HVAC National Championship, the IDEAL Electrical Championship, and the U.S. Auto Tech National Championship, presented by Yokohama.

The Plumbing National Championship kicked off July 10 and provided a platform for plumbers to compete head-to-head in a series of digital and hands-on challenges. Participants demonstrated their expertise in skills essential to the trade, vying for the coveted title of the best plumber in the country and the industry's ultimate bragging rights, in addition to a share of $20,000 in cash and prizes.

Finalists will face off in the Championship at the Tampa Convention Center in Tampa, Florida, on Oct. 27. The top plumbers will face the final round of competition in a custom-built arena. In addition to the opportunity to win cash prizes, each finalist will receive a custom VIP prize package from the sponsors.

"We are incredibly excited to introduce the Plumbing National Championship to the 8th annual Elite Trades Championship Series," said Scott Mendel, senior vice president of the Elite Trades Championship Series. "With successful championship events in electrical, automotive and HVAC, this new event will showcase the remarkable talents of plumbing professionals and elevate the plumbing trade to new heights. We look forward to witnessing the fierce competition and crowning the first-ever Plumbing National Champion."

The Plumbing National Championship is made possible by the generous support of national program sponsors and partners, including SharkBite, a Reliance Worldwide Corporation (RWC) brand; Florida PHCC; and Intersport.

"We are proud to support the inaugural Plumbing National Championship as a sponsor. This competition provides an exceptional opportunity to showcase the expertise and dedication of plumbing professionals," said Chris Carrier, senior director of marketing at RWC. "We believe in recognizing and celebrating the skills that drive our industry forward, and we can't wait to see what these competitors can do."