Think of it like this: Recipes are guidelines. What worked great for them is more than likely going to be a good place to start. But, everyone's methods are different, and will produce a different beer. Jamil has tons of experience and lots of knowledge. Someone who understands their own system and uses proven methods, will probably get very close to duplicating the flavor that Jamil won an award for.
Someone who is still learning, and hasn't mastered temp control, pitch rate, etc, is not going to get the same beer.
A competition is as much about testing your methods as it is about the recipe you are brewing.