The South Pacific cup

Initially, it will see teams of three yachts from Australia and NZ racing for recognition as the top ocean racing nation at the regatta, however, interest is already being expressed from other countries, including the USA, UK, and China (Hong Kong) for future years. It is likely that some of these international owners will charter local yachts instead of shipping their boats to Australia, said organisers.

The competition has been designed along the lines of other well-known international team events, like the prestigious Admiral's Cup in England and the Kenwood Cup in Hawaii. Coincidentally, Bob Oatley, whose family company owns Hamilton Island, led the Australian team that won the Admiral's Cup when it was last contested in Cowes, England, in 2003.

Australian Olympic and world championship winning yachtsman, Iain Murray, commodore of Hamilton Island Yacht Club, said the decision to establish the South Pacific Cup came in response to increasing international interest in Race Week.

"This is another very exciting development for Race Week," said Murray.

"This year we are going to see a return of the great Trans Tasman rivalry that Australian and NZ sailors have enjoyed so much in the past, and in the future there will be other foreign teams competing.

"We have the opportunity to mould the South Pacific Cup into what is the most successful regatta of its type in Australia, and while it will bring a much stronger international flavour to Race Week, I must stress that we will not be losing sight of the importance to us of the everyday sailors who are the foundation of the event," Murray said.

Organisers said enthusiasm for the Cup is already running high in NZ, so-much-so that a team selection series is mooted. Ray Haslar, one of NZ's most prominent offshore yachtsmen and a former 'New Zealand Sailor of the Year', is propelling the concept on that side of the Tasman Sea.

"It's more than 20 years since NZ sent a national team to Australia for an international series, so what better way to get things going again than with the South Pacific Cup," said Haslar.

"We have plenty of good yachts lining up for our team and we are expecting some excellent racing," he said.

Audi Hamilton Island Race Week's regatta director, Denis Thompson, said it was proposed that each team would comprise three yachts drawn from an IRC rating division. Team yachts will accumulate points while racing in their division.

Major Race Week sponsor, Audi, has welcomed the establishment of the South Pacific Cup.

Organisers said Audi Hamilton Island Race Week is Australia's most awarded regatta; it has been recognised as Qld's 'Best Significant Event' at the annual Qld Tourism Awards on three occasions, and has also taken out two Australian Tourism Awards.

For more information, visit www.hamiltonislandraceweek.com.au