File photo. Rowland Smith, seven times winner of the Open shearing titles, successfully defending his title in 2019. Photo: Supplied
The three-day Golden Shears international championships kicked off with more than 370 shearers, woolhandlers and woolpressers gathering in Masterton for the event.
The Golden Shears has been held annually for more than 60 years at Masterton's War Memorial Stadium in March.
Shearing Sports New Zealand spokesperson Doug Laing said this year's competition would feature 22 titles across the shearing sports, as the event bounces back after two years of Covid-related cancellations.
Laing said more than 80 competitors from overseas had registered for the event - at least 38 from the UK and 37 from Australia.
The winner of the Open shearing final would win a place in the New Zealand team for the world championships in Scotland in June, as would the first two in the woolhandling selection series.
Laing said Rowland Smith, seven-times winner of the Open shearing titles, faced challenges from regulars such as four-times winner John Kirkpatrick and 2015 Gavin Mutch, both also farming and shearing in Hawke's Bay, and emerging hopefuls such as Toa Henderson, of Kaiwaka, Northland.
The Golden Shears would also debut some hopefully future stars in a Teddy Bear Shear, where children pretend-shear using teddies as the sheep, and handpieces or such things as wooden blocks in their hands.
