The two finalists in the race to become the nation's first astronaut will begin basic astronaut training on Monday.

The Korea Aerospace Research Institute said Go San and Lee So-yeon will be trained in space engineering, the Russian language and culture as well as the management of their physical state.

After basic training, the two finalists will leave for Russia next month where they will begin a year of full-fledged training to prepare for space travel.

Go San is a 30-year-old researcher from the computer vision and human intelligence division at Samsung Advanced Institute of Technology.

Lee So-yeon is a 28-year-old female doctorate student at the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology.