The contest is attended by more than 1 400 players from 12 provinces and municipalities.

Each provincial team has more than 120 players including kindergarteners, primary and secondary schoolchildren, university students, workers, peasants, office workers as well as athletes.

Among them are a kindergartener weighing 43 kg, who is participating in ssirum (Korean wrestling) event, and 11 coaches from five families.

What catches one's eye is Kangwon provincial team's advance into the finals of ssirum, which took the sixth place last year.

For the ssirum event, every team should include nine players ranging from kindergarteners, primary schoolers to athletes.

Especially, the ssirum team of North Phyongan Province with Ri Jo Won, four-time winner of the Grand Bull Prize National Ssirum Contest, is drawing public attention.

North Phyongan and Kangwon provincial teams went into the finals of the event.