South Korea on Monday celebrated the 25th anniversary of the first Olympic Games held on its soil.

The country’s leading sports officials and former Olympic medalists were on hand to mark the quarter-century anniversary of the 1988 Seoul Olympics. The ceremony was held at Seoul Olympic Museum in the nation’s capital.

The Korea Sports Promotion Foundation, which organized the event, said it hoped to celebrate the accomplishments and legacy of the 1988 Olympics, and also to encourage the current generation of athletes to reach new heights.

The Seoul Olympics kicked off on Sept. 17, 1988, as the first Olympics, winter or summer, in South Korea.

The Olympics served as a coming out party for the then emerging economy, and South Korea placed fourth, its highest position ever in the Olympic medal standings, with 12 golds and 33 medals overall. (Yonhap News)