Law wins title again

Leslie Law, selected for the British team at the Atlanta Olympics in 1996 but denied the run when his horse New Flavour went lame, scored his second win at Blarney Castle yesterday, taking the feature two-star class with the Irish export Shear l'Eau to add to his victory with Welton Envoy in the one-star in 1994.

Second after the dressage, the 34-year-old steered the grey to a foot-perfect cross-country round and, once a timing error had been corrected by the scorers, was promoted to the head of the leaderboard when Mark Todd's dressage winner Dazzling Light got caught by the clock for 12 time faults, jeopardising the New Zealander's hopes of a second consecutive victory.

Todd's second runner, the stallion Aberjack, was lucky to get round inside the optimum after the stitching broke on his right stirrup at the fifth fence, eventually dropping off just before the second water. Despite the handicap, Todd and the stallion were clear inside the time to move up into third behind stablemate Dazzling Light, both within a single show jump of overnight leaders Law and Shear l'Eau, with Todd's pupil Antonio Sanfelice flying the Italian flag in third.

Todd was clear in yesterday's show jumping with Aberjack, but the mare Dazzling Light connected with a single pole to drop one slot and, when Law and the talented grey were faultless throughout, it was the British national anthem that resounded around the arena during the prize-giving, with Todd second and third ahead of young British rider David Herron with Future Perfect.

Bandon rider Patricia Donegan was best of the Irish in fifth with the talented grey Don't Step Back, which had finished third in last year's one-star class.

Austin O'Connor, winner of the one-star for the past two years but with no runner to aim for the hat-trick, looked a serious contender in the two-star until Mystery Man opted not to jump the narrow flower-box coming out of the first water.

The one-star honours eventually went to reigning European champion Bettina Overesch of Germany, whose cross-country clear on Saturday with the gangly grey Woodsides Ashby paved the way for victory when Overesch's boyfriend Andrew Hoy had problems at the double of corners on dressage leader Moon Fleet.

Gerald Bloomer, a 16-year-old Kings Hospital boarder, led from flagfall to win the junior class with the year younger Archie Brown which was a chance buy seven weeks ago.