A groundbreaking ceremony to mark the construction of a new world-class rowing venue took place Tuesday in Chungju, North Chungcheong Province.

Tangeum Lake in Chungju, located some 120 kilometers southeast of Seoul, is now being turned into a 133,500 square meter-large rowing competition venue, includi ng a grand stand and a finish tower with a 62.1 billion won in investment by 2012 for the championships the following year. 

The 2013 Rowing Championship will be held at the venue from Aug. 25-Sept. 1. The week long competition, which is organized by the International Rowing Federation, will feature more than 2,300 athletes from 80 countries, according to the organizer.

Some 1,000 people, including Culture, Sports and Tourism Minister Choung Byoung-gug and North Chungcheong Governor Lee Si-jong attended Tuesday’s ground breaking ceremony. Speaking at the ceremony, Lee noted that the day is the start of the city’s dream to become a global rowing mecca.

“We’ll do our best to prepare for the 2013 World Championships,” Lee said.

By Oh Kyu-wook (596story@heraldcorp.com)