A national sports competition will kick off in Cheongju, North Chungcheong Province Friday.

During the seven-day athletic meet, some 24-thousand athletes from across the country will compete in 41 sports events for some 860 gold medals up for grabs.

In particular, Athens Olympic gold medalists, including archer Park Sung-hyun, table tennis player Ryu Seung-min and Taekwondo player Moon Dae-sung are competing in the annual sports event.