Ansan project takes shape
South Korea's first Champ Car circuit has taken a step closer to reality with ground breaking taking place in Ansan.
A 90-minute groundbreaking ceremony was held with governemnt and circuit officials, as well as from the Racing Korea and Champ Car event organizers.
Vice Mayor of Ansan City, Doo Hyun Kwon, and Governor of Gyeonggi Province Hak-Kyu Son were among the luminaries on hand along with Champ Car co-owner Kevin Kalkhoven and Champ Car senior vice-president Joe Chrnelich. They turned shovels at the site of what will be a 1.9-mile parkland race course, with 1,000 turning out to watch proceedings.
Ansan, a dynamic city just a short drive from the country's capital of Seoul, is historically known as an industrial city and recently transformed into an investment and transaction centre. The city is eager to host an international motor sport event to put it on the map and increase its tourist appeal.
This event is scheduled for October 16, 2005 and will be the first Korean race on the Champ Car calendar. Previous efforts to host a race in Seoul have failed to materialise.
Exciting opportunity
The course is being designed and constructed by D3 Motorsport Development and will feature elevation changes. The finished course will be similar in style to the Fundidora Park circuit in Monterrey, Mexico.
"D3 is excited to have the opportunity to expand the motor racing industry to new international destinations, building first class facilities and superior events is what we do best and Ansan is a dynamic city with plenty of international appeal," said executive director Jeremy Dickson.
"This event has the potential to be a very unique event for the Champ Car calendar and also very opportunistic for teams' sponsors."
D3 has been responsible for designing and constructing tracks such as Surfers Paradise in Australia, Fundidora Park and Mexico City in Mexico. This year, as well as the Ansan track, they will be bringing the San Jose, California, circuit to the calendar.
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