Many of the country's top yachties will line up in Auckland's Torbay this weekend for the Sir Peter Blake Memorial Youth regatta.
The regatta involves 350 sailors from throughout the North Island.
They will compete in classes ranging from Optimist, P Class, Starling, Sunburst, Splash, 420s and Laser radials throughto the Europe, Mistral, Laser and 470 Olympics classes.
Many of the Olympic class sailors will use the two day regatta as part of their build-up to the Olympic selection trials, to be held off Torbay from January 16 to 22.
The event is one of Yachting New Zealand's ranking regattas, which determine who qualifies for financing to attend overseas regattas.
Among those competing in the Olympic classes are Europe sailor Sarah Macky, board sailors Jon-Paul Tobin and Thomas Ashley, and Laser sailors Hamish Pepper, Dan Slater and Andrew Murdoch.
In its second year, the Sir Peter Blake Memorial Regatta is the largest that any club in Auckland hosts.
It is held close to the America Cup courses out from Waiake beach in Torbay.
The Sir Peter Blake Cup is awarded to the most outstanding sailor of the regatta.
Last year it was won by Brazil's Marco Grael, son of Prada sailor Torben Grael, in the Optimist class.
