New Zealand

I've heard that anyone with an old felony conviction - even for a white-collar or nonviolent crime - is barred from visiting New Zealand. Is that true? There are no hard and fast rules regarding entry into New Zealand by convicted felons, according to a spokesman for Immigration New Zealand. Most U.S. citizens can visit the country for up to 90 days with a passport, but anyone with a criminal conviction must also obtain a visa. As part of the application process, you will need to provide details of the conviction and information regarding the arrest and release from prison.

SAN DIEGO -- Three days into the Louis Vuitton Cup, there already was talk of a critical race yesterday between Team New Zealand and Win New Zealand, each of which was undefeated in the challenger trials for the America's Cup.It may seem absurd that such an early race carry much, if any, importance in a four-month regatta.But yesterday Team New Zealand constructed an early yardstick by which every challenger syndicate in town can measure its progress.In winds from 5 to 6 knots and unsettled seas, Team New Zealand and skipper Russell Coutts started the second race of the day 10 minutes behind the first pair, oneAustralia and Sydney '95 -- and finished the 18.55-nautical-mile course ahead of Sydney '95 and less than a minute behind oneAustralia.

AUCKLAND, New Zealand -- Long before the 11 contenders from seven nations came to Auckland for the 30th challenge for the America's Cup, the competitors agreed not to fraternize with the enemy -- New Zealand.The informal pact decreed there would be no pre-Cup hookups and therefore no window of opportunity for the defenders to see how likely they were to retain yachting's holy grail.But if Sir Peter Blake, the CEO of Cup defender Team New Zealand, is right, all that is about to change."We would love to sail against some of the challengers, and we will," Sir Peter said.

At the completion of the round-robin portion of the Cadillac Columbus Cup regatta yesterday, two things were perfectly clear: New Zealand had rallied to finish in first place, and Denmark was firmly in second. From there, the standings were something of a puzzle for a while.Team USA, Japan and Team Baltimore finished the six flights of the round robin with 3-3 records. Of those three teams, only two could make the final four that may race today.As it turned out, based on head-to-head competition, Team USA and Japan were in and Team Baltimore was gone, dropped to fifth place because it had lost to Japan and been disqualified jointly with Team USA on Thursday.

AUCKLAND, New Zealand -- Sailing faster both upwind and downwind, the New Zealand boat Black Magic won the opening race of the 30th America's Cup against Italy's Luna Rossa by a commanding 1 minute, 17 seconds. It was an immediate boost to the Kiwis' effort to become the first non-American team to successfully defend the 149-year-old Cup, sports' oldest continuous trophy. It was also a convincing rebuttal of skeptics who thought Black Magic's innovative design would give it the edge in heavy weather at the cost of its light wind performance.

You probably already know that New Zealand is made up of two big islands somewhere near Australia and that its national symbol is a funny-looking flightless bird with a fruit named after it. What you can add to your list of "Things I Know About New Zealand" is that the land of lamb and the home of the kiwi produces some mighty impressive white wines -- plus some better-than-decent reds. Not long ago, it was rare to sight a New Zealand wine in an American wine shop. Fortunately, that is no longer the case.

Four-time champion Italy was on the wrong end of the latest surprising result at this year's World Cup, held to a 1-1 draw Sunday by New Zealand. The defending champ Italians got their only goal in the Group F match in Nelspruit from the penalty spot, further exposing its lack of finishing power up front. New Zealand took the lead against Italy when Shane Smeltz tapped in a ball that had glanced off defender Fabio Cannavaro in the seventh minute. It was New Zealand's only shot on goal the entire match and beat Federico Marchetti, who was replacing injured veteran Gianluigi Buffon.

AUCKLAND, New Zealand -- New Zealand designer Laurie Davidson has some bad news for the America's Cup challengers.Davidson says his Team New Zealand defender is 2 percent faster around the course than New Zealand challenger NZL 32 was when it won the Cup in five straight races off San Diego in 1995.The designer allowed a chuckle of excitement to ripple his usually calm demeanor as he added, with emphasis: "This is not just seconds; we're talking minutes faster."Davidson is not a man to boast.

It may not matter much if, in New Zealand, water swirls clockwise down the drain or even that the shady side of the street is always on the south. But for anyone planning a warm-weather winter vacation, the important fact is that the seasons are also reversed near the bottom of the world.In what travel writer James Michener has called "probably the most beautiful place on earth," spring turns into summer by December. In New Zealand's top resort area, the South Island's Queenstown, typical January temperatures hover in the 70s, and leaf season doesn't begin until March.

Bill Pacer has been so busy fielding calls from reporters that he's wondering whether he's going to get a chance to shed the trappings of the "textile world" and have some serious fun during the second annual Nude Olym-picks.Word of the four-day mock-athletic event, which got under way in earnest today at a private campground near the tiny Harford County village of Darlington, has been streaking over the news wires, piquing the interest of zany radio disk-jockeys and other media-types far and wide.