The world’s athletics enthusiasts have only five days to wait before the start of the IAAF World Championships in Daegu. The world’s premier track-and-field competition is set to open on Aug. 27 in Daegu for a nine-day run until Sept. 4.

Some 2,500 of the world’s greatest athletes from more than 200 countries, including Usain Bolt, the fastest man on earth, will compete in 49 events, the largest sports gathering on the planet this year, under the slogan of “Sprint Together for Tomorrow.”

They will perform to the best of their abilities, delivering an outstanding sporting spectacle to TV viewers in 190 countries around the world.

The athletics competition, a showcase event for the International Association of Athletic Federations, is one of the world’s four largest sporting events, the other three being the Summer and Winter Olympics and FIFA World Cup.

Currently, only four countries ― Japan, Germany, France and Italy ― have staged these four sports competitions. Korea is scheduled to join this elite club in 2018 as it recently won the bid to host the Winter Olympics in 2018 in PyongChang. The nation organized the Summer Olympics in 1988 and co-hosted the 2002 World Cup with Japan.

Playing host to a big sporting event is the most effective way to publicize a country or a city to the global community. That’s why competition to host the top four sporting events is always heated.

The athletics meet is expected to increase the global awareness of Daegu, the hub of the nation’s textile industry. Through the event, the vibrant city seeks to publicize its strengths and potential to grow into a global center of the fashion and textile industries.

The local organizing committee for the event has made extraordinary efforts, in cooperation with the city, to keep the promise it made during the bidding competition four years ago ― to make the Daegu event the best World Championships ever.

Now, all preparations have been finished and the city is ready to welcome the participating athletes and visiting sports fans from abroad. The success of the sporting event depends primarily on the participation and cooperation of Daegu’s citizens. We have no doubt that they will spare no effort to make it a great success. The entire nation should also help them make the event the greatest ever championships.