Chadwick, 31, originally from Hawera, had a poor start to 2008 -- he was hospitalised for several weeks in February after doctors discovered he had the Epstein-Barr virus in his spine.
After his recovery, he went on to win two stages and the overall title at the inaugural Tour of Arkansas in May. He then represented New Zealand at the Beijing Olympic Games, along with Julian Dean and Tim Gudsell in the road race.
Riding for the American Team Type 1, he went on to claim the Tour of Mexico in emphatic fashion after the Olympics and finished sixth at the Sun Tour in Australia in the leadup to the Southland tour.
Chadwick, who has been based in Australia and then the United States for a number of years, will be making his Southland tour debut.
"I've been trying to been trying to come here for the last four years but something always happened like an injury. I'm here now and plan to make the most of it.
"I would love to go out with a third win for the year -- to win a tour in New Zealand would be a pretty good way to end the season. Anything can happen in this race from what I've heard -- we'll just see what mother nature throws at us."
Chadwick, who will be supported by Robin Reid, Beijing Olympian Peter Latham, Jusion Kerr and Shem Roger in the Raboplus team, felt that defending champion Hayden Roulston (Southland Times Trek), Jeremy Yates (Subway Avanti), Heath Blackgrove (Colourplus), who has a strong team in Olympics team pursuit bronze medallists Marc Ryan and Westley Gough, Logan Hutchings and Justin England, and Dominque Rollin (Delmaine R&R), would be the main contenders for the overall title.
Yates would be a strong force as he was in form, having won the fourth round of the national points series in the Coromandel on Saturday and finished seventh in the Sun Tour, one place behind Chadwick.
Meanwhile, six-time Canadian road champion Rollin said he would be looking for a good result in Southland.
He had heard about the tour from fellow Toyota United teammates Blackgrove and Justin England in the United States and had wanted to extend his riding season while getting out of the northern winter.
"I am not here for a summer break," Rollin, 26, told NZPA.
"I could choose somewhere more exotic to go to if it was a break. I have flown halfway across the planet to get away from the winter -- it's already snowing in Montreal -- I am here to race my bike as hard as I can."
He will be supported by young up and coming New Zealand reps Mark Langlands, Matt Sillars, Sam King-Turner and Ashley Whitehead.
"They are good young guys and they are motivated. I think Delmaine can do something interesting."
Described as an allrounder, Rollin said the conditions offered by the Tour of Southland would suit him.
"This tour is more my type of tour -- less climbing (than at the Sun Tour where he had a top 10 finish), more windy situation, bad weather type of conditions where I excel so I can have a shot," added Rollin who won a stage in this year's prestigious Tour of California as well as the overall sprint classification.
The six-day Powernet-sponsored tour begins with two stages today, an 8.42km team time trial in the heart of Invercargill followed by an 81.63km race from Invercargill to Bluff.
