For the first time in the history of the award, which was created by the International Optometrists Association (IOA) in 2018 and awarded during Silmo, it was won by the Portuguese: Vitor Martins.
This is the first time that a Portuguese optician has been named World Optician of the Year. Until now, this model has been trusted by the Anglo-Saxons, with the exception of last year with the honouring of the Frenchman Jean-François Porte, where this time the distinction went to Vítor Martins. The news was announced to the person concerned on Saturday afternoon, 21st, in Silmo, and he was seen jumping for joy, before warmly embracing his fellow nominees, including an American and two Englishmen. That same evening, on the sidelines of the Silmo d'or ceremony, his award was officially presented. Remember that this prize has been awarded since 2018 by the International Association of Optometrists (IOA), a very important professional organisation based across the Channel, in partnership with Silmo.
IOA representative, Ellen Grisdal, advocate for Francophonie, pointed out the quality of the applications submitted by the 2024 finalists: “None of them were as thick as a cigarette paper,” confirming that the jury had a hard time choosing between them. In addition to the criterion of professional competence of the opticians in the race, this award takes into account, let us remember, other aspects of their activity: trade union participation, implementation of a corporate social responsibility policy, solidarity initiatives, etc. In this last aspect, for example, Vítor Martins has carried out various humanitarian operations in recent years in São Tomé and Príncipe, Peru, Cape Verde, and even in Kenya, and recently in Guinea-Bissau. There, around 400 people in need have been equipped.
Above: Portuguese optician Vitor Martins is the World's Best Optician 2024.
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