An international fencing championship will kick off three days of competition at the Olympic Park in eastern Seoul on Friday.

Several of the world's top fencers will compete at the 2007 SK Telecom Women’s Fleuret International Grand Prix and Men’s Fleuret World Cup A-Class Fencing Championship. Participants include Korea’s Nam Hyun-hee, Italy’s Valentina Vezzali and Germany’s Peter Joppich.

A total of 315 fencers from 30 countries will participate in the tournament, which offers points on the road to qualifying for the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games.