The Otago Students Spearfishing and Hunting Club is hosting a spearfishing competition on Saturday, May 15, to raise money for the Mental Health Foundation.
A safety briefing would be held on Friday night, before competition started on Saturday morning, club president Ben Verheijen said.
There would be a set zone for people to fish in.
Weigh-in would start at noon, followed by prizes.
"It’s an organised day of spearfishing going towards mental health, in a nutshell," Mr Verheijen said.
For club members entry is $20, while it is $40 for non-members.
So far, about 70 people were interested in what the club hoped to make an annual event.
"The idea is ... it’s just going to build and get bigger and bigger."
The Mental Health Foundation was a worthwhile charity, he said.
Spearfishing was a great way to relax, deal with any kind of stress and day-to-day problems.
"It’s definitely had a good impact on me."
Formerly the University of Otago’s scuba diving club, the club was "brought back to life" about five years ago by former executive members.
Mr Verheijen had just started university and although he had not been spearfishing before, joined the club through the urging of friends.
He had experience scuba diving.
After being part of the club’s executive for the first two years, he became president last year and retained the role this year.
Since last year was interrupted by Covid-19, he was trying to get things rolling this year.
"The main thing we’re trying to do now is just get more and more people involved each year."
That included getting more women in what had been a relatively male-dominated sport.
The club has about 690 members on its social media page and organises a range of events including fishing trips, beach clean-ups and social events.
To help people into the sport, the club received grants from the Otago University Students’ Association which it used to buy new dive equipment.
"We’re really starting to build up the dive shed at the moment," Mr Verheijen said.
The aim was to rent the equipment to students at an affordable rate.
"So if people pay to join the club they can literally hire out a full kit of spearfishing gear for $20 a day.
"It’s cool to be able to offer that for so cheap for students.
"I know there’s a lot of people out there who would love it."
