Otago University has the championship shield in its grasp after dominating the rowing at the New Zealand University Games at Lake Waihola at the weekend.
Most of the sports will start in Invercargill today, but because of a the lack of a suitable venue in Southland the rowing was held at Lake Waihola.
It is the first time the Games have been held in Southland and the headquarters are at Stadium Southland.
Almost 800 athletes will be competing in 22 sports from aquathon to volleyball.
The competition finishes on Friday with a closing ceremony at Stadium Southland.
Otago University easily won the rowing with 115 points and was followed by Canterbury 65 and Auckland 12.
A feature of the rowing was Canterbury's upset win in the men's eight when it beat Otago by a length to lift the Hebberley Shield that Otago had held for the last eight years.
But Otago had better strength across the board and this was reflected by its convincing win in the women's eights.
Two Otago scullers were selected in the New Zealand University team for the World University Rowing Championships in Hungary next August.
Fergus Fauvel and Elyse Fraser will contest the men's and women's single sculls.
They are both coached by Sonya Walker and Glen Sinclair.
Canterbury University scullers Armin Svoboda and Andrew O'Connor have been named for the men's lightweight double sculls.
The New Zealand University Games rowing competition was also a trial for the New Zealand team.
A men's and women's eight, a women's lightweight quadruple sculls and a men's lightweight four have been named to compete in the University Transtasman series in Queenstown and Dunedin in July.
Otago University has a team of 160 athletes in Invercargill and they will compete in 18 sports. Eighty competed for Otago in the rowing.
Otago's best chance of a gold medal is in lawn bowls with Abbey Dugdale in the women's pairs. She won the gold medal last year.
There is also a strong basketball team that will be keen to emulate the deeds of two years ago by winning the gold medal again.
Otago has a strong squash team with Ben Clarke, Ross Haines and James Lilley.
The badminton team of Alex Lee, Allan Lu and Matt Ng is also expected to win gold.
A feature of the Games will be the cycling on the Invercargill Velodrome that is rated as one of the best in the world.
Otago cyclists expected to shine include James Grant, Sam Hazlett and Lawrence Holding.
The New Zealand University Games was known as the Easter tournament when it was first held in 1902 with only three sports - tennis, athletics and debating.
Tertiary athletes travel all over New Zealand to compete for the ultimate prize, the University Games Shield.
The Shield is awarded to the overall champion and was first awarded in 1923.
Otago University has been dominant in the past games winning the shield an impressive 35 times.
Auckland and Canterbury University both have 13 wins.
