Dickson at this year's Omega Gold Cup already has Bermuda and the yachting world excited.

After a two-year hiatus where the New Zealand native "retired'' from competitive match racing to pursue other endeavours, the man largely responsible for bringing yacht racing from the shadows of the back pages to the front is back.

A little rusty and two years older, Dickson is still a feared competitor possessing an abundance of confidence.

And why not? This is a man who left the sport while still at the top of his game, kind of like a famous basketball player -- somebody named Michael -- and Dickson is here to regain the mantle he believes is rightfully his.

Two days of racing have shown that he still possesses much of the skills required, although there have been a few mistakes made along the way which Dickson may not have made two years ago. But a 5-2 record and entrance into the best-of-five championship round should give him ample opportunity to iron out any kinks.

"I feel very, very pleased,'' said Dickson. "I haven't done a match race regatta, or even a match race itself, or even a pre-start for two years. And I was very aware coming back that we would have to learn to crawl before we walked and before we ran.

"So back out of retirement it's a good feeling. I'm excited about being out there racing, love being in Bermuda, the boats are great, the crew's done a fantastic job and, hey, we've qualified to tack for another boat.'' And not much has really changed. No conversation at the host Royal Bermuda Yacht Club is complete without mention of the Kiwi and it is he, as an unseeded skipper, drawing the media crowd.

The scene appears just like old times, with the only difference being the absence of compatriot and long-time rival Russell Coutts, who in Dickson's absence took over the number one spot before recently surrendering it to Peter Gilmour.

"Well, we got out of the game when we were on top,'' explained Dickson, readying for participation in next year's America's Cup. "We were ranked number one in the world, we'd won the world championships and basically retired from match racing to do the Whitbread Round the World race.

"So now we've come back, haven't been here for two years and it seems like a little of the magic's still there ...we're still able to pull the odd trick out of the bag.'' "This is the beginning of the comeback!''