Stewart Dodson is back in familiar territory in more ways than one.

The Kiwi sailor was relishing the opportunity to be back on home waters as part of the Swiss SailGP team competing in Auckland this weekend. But on top of that, the regatta is another chance for his team to learn after an off-season full of change.

In season four, Dodson became the first Kiwi athlete to lift the SailGP championship as part of the surprise title-winning Spanish outfit.

The team left their run late, sneaking into the three-boat shootout before topping Australia and New Zealand’s Black Foils in the grand final match race in July.

But after being recruited by the Swiss, who finished at the bottom of the 10-team leaderboard - Dodson told the Herald the new campaign brought a similar challenge with it.

“It was a big challenge with the Spanish. When I joined the team, we were bottom of the podium as well, so it was a big challenge there and was very successful. That was a big part of the reason to move here too; another challenge, a new group of people and new experiences.”

Stewart Dodson joined the Swiss SailGP Team after winning the title with Spain last season. Photo / Adam Mustill, SailGP SUI

Switzerland were one of two teams to join the league in season three, alongside Canada, and finished eighth in the nine-team campaign that year, before falling further off the pace in season four. Now in their third season, the Swiss are yet to feature in a podium race.

Dodson, who was a free agent following the championship-winning campaign with Spain, was recruited as part of a personnel overhaul in the team after a poor run last season.

“There was a call from the Swiss team. They approached me at the end of the season and started quite loose negotiations. By September it progressed quite a bit more. We came to an agreement and, yeah, good deal. Good move.”

Arnaud Psarofaghis (wing trimmer), Bryan Mettraux (flight controller), Matt Gotrel (grinder) and Maud Jayet (strategist) also joined the team in the off-season – with driver Sebastian Schneiter the only member of the on-board crew retaining his role for the new campaign.

Kiwi Joseph Sullivan – an Olympic rowing gold medallist and America’s Cup winner – has also joined the team in Auckland as a third grinder.

Stewart Dodson (third from left) won the SailGP season four championship with Spain. Photo / Adam Warner, SailGP

“It’s been pretty seamless, settling in. There are quite a few new people in the Swiss team – it was pretty much a full overhaul of the team, so we’re all learning a lot as a team together and individually.

“It’s the first time for a few guys on the F50 so there’s definitely a lot of learning to still be done. A lot of learning has been done, but we’re working in the right direction for sure.”

Christopher Reive joined the Herald sports team in 2017, bringing the same versatility to his coverage as he does to his sports viewing habits.