JEOLLABUK-DO < invest Korea

According to Yonhap News,

(CHELYABINSK=Yonhap News) The timing couldn't have been better for South Korea to host taekwondo's world championship for the seventh time in 2017, the sport's top official said Monday.

Muju, located about 240 kilometers south of Seoul in North Jeolla Province, was picked as the host of the 2017 World Taekwondo Federation (WTF) World Championships during the WTF's Executive Council meeting here in Russia on Sunday. Muju defeated Turkey's Samsun, as South Korea, home of taekwondo, will be hosting the martial art's signature competition for the seventh time. The event began in 1973 and has been held every two years since.

Choue Chung-won, the South Korean-born head of the WTF, rejected the notion that South Korea shouldn't be staging the worlds too often and should instead be letting other countries serve as hosts.

Choue reasoned that the 2017 worlds will be the perfect platform for Muju to promote its recently-constructed Taekwondo Park, a sprawling complex dedicated to the martial art that includes an arena, a museum and a training center.

It opened in September but remains relatively unknown outside South Korea.

"I am pleased the world championships will take place in Muju at an appropriate timing," Choue said. "I hope the Taekwondo Park will be further promoted during the 2017 championships and develop into a shrine for all involved in taekwondo."

Though the final vote tally wasn't disclosed, Muju reportedly enjoyed a landslide victory over Samsun, which had a strong backing from the government in its bid to host the worlds for the first time.

In August, Muju will host the WTF World Cadet Taekwondo Championships in August, and will hold a major international taekwondo camp for junior athletes next year.

Choue said the WTF will soon relocate the headquarters for the WTF Taekwondo Peace Corps, a volunteer group, to Muju's Taekwondo Park to help promote the complex.

jeeho@yna.co.kr

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