Glamour field for fashion race

Finalists in the Best Dressed competition line up in front of the New Zealand Trotting Cup crowds yesterday. Photo / Simon Baker

The best and the brightest have been on show, on and off the racetrack, as Christchurch turns on its annual New Zealand Cup and Show Week.

Thousands glammed up and turned out in cool conditions yesterday for the New Zealand Trotting Cup at Addington Raceway, with the weather seeming to discourage some of the drunken antics seen in previous years.

Aside from the horse racing, the week also features the country's top fashion designers on show at Style Christchurch, when the latest collections from the likes of Zambesi, Stitch Ministry, Annah Stretton and Aduki take flight in an aviation inspired theatre fashion show.

Other entertainment will include top musicians and a rodeo.

The country's largest A&P show, the Royal NZ Show, is expected to draw tens of thousands of visitors through the week.