This event is the last chance for teams to earn Olympic qualification points for Pyeongchang 2018, with their tallies from this year's competition being added to the 2016 edition, which was held in Canada.

As hosts, South Korea have qualified for Pyeongchang and will be joined by the seven teams with the best qualifying points tally from 2016 and 2017.

The final two places will be decided at a special qualification event, due to be held between December 5 and 10 in Pilsen in the Czech Republic.

This tournament will be the second time that that a World Curling Championship has been held in China, with Beijing hosting the 2014 men’s event.

The venue, originally opened in 1968, has a seating capacity of more than 17,000 and was renovated and used for volleyball during the 2008 Olympic Games.

Switzerland have enjoyed plenty of glory in this tournament recently and arrive in Beijing searching for a fourth consecutive title.

After success in Saint John in Canada in 2014 and the Japanese city of Sapporo in 2015, the defending champions' most recent victory came after they beat Japan 9-6 in the final last year in Swift Current.

They will be joined in the tournament by Canada, hosts China, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Germany, Italy, South Korea, Russia, Scotland, Sweden and the United States.

Following the Opening Ceremony tomorrow, round-robin play will continue until March 23.

After this, one session tie-breakers will be played, if needed, to determine the top four ranked teams.

The top two ranked teams from the round-robin stage then face each other, with the winner going straight into to the final.

The loser is given a second chance by playing a semi-final against the winner of the play-off between the teams ranked third and fourth.

The winner of that sole semi-final goes onto the final to compete for gold while the loser drops into the bronze medal match with the tournament drawing to a close on March 26 with the gold and bronze medal finals.

This will be the first Women's World Championship to use the new trophy designed and created by Thomas Lyte of England to mark the WCF's 50th anniversary, which draws to its conclusion at the Men's World Championship in Edmonton in Canada between April 1 and 9.