Beijing started construction Tuesday on the gymnasium for judo and taekwondo competition of the 2008 Olympic Games.

The gymnasium, located on the campus of the Beijing University of Science and Technology, is within half-an-hour drive distance from the Olympic Green in the north part of the city. It is scheduled to be completed in August 2007.

The gymnasium, whose design was created by the Architectural Design & Research Institute of Tsinghua University, has two halls. During the Games' time, the main hall will host competition while the other serves as the training venue.

Altogether 37 competition venues are needed for the 2008 Olympics with 31 planned in Beijing. Of the 11 venues to be built from scratch in the Chinese capital, all are now under construction.

Beijing has promised to get all Olympic venues ready by the end of 2007 so that test events can be held before the start of the Games.

The 2008 Olympic Games runs from August 8 to 24, 2008.

(Xinhua News Agency October 19, 2005)