IT could not have been a better start for Ray Roberts and his DK46 Quantum Racing crew as they won the Racing class on the opening day of the Royal Langkawi International Regatta yesterday.

The Aussie flag bearer, who won the Phuket King's Cup race in December and also Class O at the recent Sydney Hobart Race, overcame a stiff challenge from fellow-Australian and three-time champion Peter Ahern's YO!2 and New Zealander Neil Pryde and his Hi Fi crew.

YO!2 and Hi Fi eventually finished joint second ahead of Jelik.

As expected, Jelik did finish both yesterday's races the fastest but was relegated to third based on the corrected time.

The Royal Malaysian Navy's Zuhrah, skippered by Mohd Razali Mansor, was fourth in moderate conditions of 15 knot winds.

A total of 33 yachts, split into six classes, are competing in the seventh edition of the regatta this year.

The other Malaysian entry, Vincent Chan's Titan 36 Mata Hari put up a good fight to finish fourth in the Premier Cruising class. "The strong winds did us in today (yesterday) as the conditions were better suited for the bigger boats," said Vincent.

The regatta will be held over the next four days. This year's event will see a new award -- the Tunku Abdullah Sportsmanship Award -- being introduced. -- SHARANJIT SINGH