A BRILLIANT performance at the world-famous Mitsubishi Badminton Horse Trials at the weekend earned Leslie Law a second place and put him in the running for the British Olympic team bound for Australia.

Law, 35, of Inkberrow, was runner-up on Sheer H20 to Mary King on Star Appeal. Mother-of-two King, who won the trials for the second time, led after the gruelling cross-country phase and was faultless during the show-jumping phase. Rodney Powell, another British rider, was third.

Law, lying in third place after the cross country, moved up to second during the final show jumping phase but in an exciting finish had a fence down. His prize-money was £22,000.

After the event, Law said the cross-country course was very technical and demanded much accuracy. "Being first to go, I had to go all out to find how the course would ride. H20 was wonderful and also coped well with the big crowds and the atmosphere which is so tremendous at Badminton."

Finishing 19th was Graham Law, of Chipping Norton, on Shot in the Dark, owned by Mrs G Kingston, of Marden, Herefordshire.

In 42nd place was Tristram Owers, 21, of Broadway, on Hatherden's Riverdance, who was competing in his first Badminton trials. The former pupil of Bishop's School, Hereford, had a splendid dressage test and surprised top competitors by finishing sixth. He went clear on the cross-country phase to finish 17th but collected a massive 55 penalty points in the show-jumping ring to ruin any chance of a high place.

Owers said he had a brilliant cross-country phase. "I was very nervous every step of the way and all the fences were daunting. I was over the moon when I finished the course."

He was docked 20 points by the judges at the lake because he was thought to have taken the wrong route but these were reinstated. Owers, who led after the first day's dressage, said after the cross-country phase that he was well aware that show jumping was Hatherden's Riverdance's worst discipline.

In 47th spot was James Robinson, a veterinary surgeon of Kimbolton, Leominster, on Chapp-aqua.