South Korea Swaps First Astronaut
http://newsvote.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7286989.stm
GJMs Yi will spend several days at the space station South Korea says its first astronaut will now be a female engineer, after Russian officials rejected the initial candidate over a breach of rules.
Yi So-yeon, 29, is to replace Ko San, 31, on a Russian flight to the International Space Station in April.
Russia's Federal Space Agency requested the change because Mr Ko broke training centre rules, a senior official said...
Mr Ko was replaced at the request of Russia "The Russians emphasised the importance of abiding by the rules, as even small mistakes can bring about grave consequences in space," Mr Lee said.
Mr Ko, who beat more than 36,000 other applicants to the position, has been training in Russia since last year.
He will now serve as the back-up astronaut when Ms Yi flies with two Russian cosmonauts to the International Space Station in early April.
Ms Yi will spend seven or eight days there, conducting a series of scientific tests..
