Cyclist Nick Kergozou is eager to add a Junior Tour of Southland title to his list of wins.
The Yunca-sponsored event is in its 31st year and begins with a time-trial at Teretonga on Friday.
The sixth and final stage is from Grove Bush to Springhills on Sunday.
Kergozou will be competing in his fifth Southland tour. He did not take part last year because he represented New Zealand at a cooking competition in Japan. He won a silver medal.
Catering courses at Southland Boys' High School have increased Kergozou's interest in cooking.
"Desserts are fun [to make]," he said.
The under-19 men's section of the Junior Tour of Southland has been a priority for Kergozou this year.
"I've put the effort in and am looking for the win," he said yesterday.
Hamish Keast, of James Hargest College, is a big hope for Southland in the tour's under-15 boys' division. Earlier this year he won all three stages of the Junior Tour of Te Awamutu.
Joshua Scott, of Christchurch, is returning for the under-17s section of the Southland tour after winning the under-15 title last year.
One of his rivals this week, fellow Papanui Cycling Club member Joshua Smith, won the under-17s at the Canterbury Road Championships in April.
Cycling Southland is delighted that six riders from the Balmoral Cycling Club in Queensland are among the 112 entries. The Australians arrive today.
Photo & article courtesy The Southland Times