Entries are ahead of schedule for the Masters Games, which is just over a month away.
Reaching the target of 5000 participants is looking very achievable for those co-ordinating the event in February next year.
Masters Games marketing co-ordinator Maria Apii said the aim now was to get above the 5000 mark.
"We currently have just over 3700 registered, which is ahead by about 6% from two years ago," she said
"Entries are still coming up and it is going really well. Following past years’ trends we will still see a good number of entries coming in between now and games time and are targeting 1300 to still enter between now and the start of the games."
As predicted, football has the highest number of registered players, with 61 teams lined up to take part. Netball is the second most popular with 51 registered teams.
From cornhole to archery, the event has 60 sports running over a nine-day period, from February 1-9.
Apii explained that while organisers wanted to attract as many people to the games as possible, it was not the be all and end all for them.
"While we would like to hit the target number because it adds to the whole atmosphere of the games itself and helps make all the sports enjoyable and viable, ultimately we want them all to enjoy the event regardless of how many we have competing overall.
"We are always looking to up the ante by having new sports and more entertainment. The age for the Masters Games is continuing to broaden — we have 90-year-olds competing and a lot more 30-year-olds competing this year too, which is great to see."
It will be a busy couple of weeks for Dunedin, as two big concerts will be in town around the Masters Games.
"There are two big events on at the same time as the Masters Games. Elton John is on on the Tuesday evening and Queen are on the Monday after the games finish, so it’s going to be busy in Dunedin.
"But we want to reassure that there is still plenty of accommodation available for the athletes to book."
Entries can be made at the Masters Games website.
- Holly Percival