Equestrian News: Billy Twomey's hopes of earning a good place on the starting grid for tomorrow's World Cup qualifier in Olympia were dashed yesterday when a fence down left him 20th in the final order

Riding the talented Anastasia, the Cork man was well up on the clock with just three left to jump, but the mare connected with the pink and blue upright on the turn down to the line to drop from a possible 10th.

Twomey was sanguine about the result, however. "That's the way it is sometimes in this game," he said afterwards. "I wasn't too disappointed. It's her make-up, she's a bit of a sensitive mare. She jumped well enough, but she just stuck her head up and ran at it."

The Cheshire-based 27-year-old jumped a superb double clear at the Dublin Horse Show to clinch victory for the home side in the Aga Khan Cup this summer, Ireland's only victory in the Samsung Super League series. But Twomey missed out on the chance of an Olympic debut when his top horse Luidam went lame.

Twomey is hoping for a better result with Anastasia tomorrow when he brings out the 10-year-old mare for the afternoon's World Cup qualifier. "I'd rather she had a fence down today than on Sunday," he said.

Sixteen riders managed to find the key to Bob Ellis' twisting 11-fence track. First man in, Brazilian Rodrigo Pessoa, who finished second behind Cian O'Connor in the Olympic individual final in Athens and is awaiting the outcome of Waterford Crystal's doping case, set the pace with a clear from his triple World Cup champion Baloubet du Rouet.

Stopping the clock on 51.78 seconds, Pessoa threw down the gauntlet to the opposition and it looked as though the on-course bookies were right to quote him as one of three 5/1 joint-favourites.

It was a tough target and Pessoa must have thought he had it all sewn up as he watched his rivals crash out in rapid succession. Britain's Robert Whitaker, a winner in Belfast at the beginning of the month, came closest, slotting into temporary second, but Frenchman Philippe Rozier had other ideas about the finishing order.

Snaking round the track, he had the mare Heritiere d'Adrier home in 49.95 to slash almost two seconds off Pessoa's time.

British speed aces Robert Smith and Nick Skelton, quoted as joint-favourites with Pessoa, were still waiting in the wings, but neither managed to leave all the fences standing, much to the disappointment of the capacity partisan crowd.

So it was Rozier, the only one to break the 50-second barrier, who held on for the win and who now has the benefit of a last-to-go start in tomorrow's World Cup qualifier. Pessoa left Olympia at the gallop immediately after the class, sprinting straight for the airport to fly to the Spanish show in La Coruna for today's €200,000 Grand Prix.

But the Brazilian will be back in London tomorrow and will jump second last, immediately after best of the British Robert Whitaker. Twomey will be 17th to go in the 37-horse field for the feature class.

OLYMPIA CHRISTMAS CRACKER (pre-qualifier for World Cup): 1 France's Heritiere d'Adrier (Philippe Rozier), 0 faults, 49.95 seconds; 2 Brazil's Baloubet du Rouet (Rodrigo Pessoa), 0, 51.78; 3 Britain's Nicolette II (Robert Whitaker), 0, 52.94; 20 Ireland's Anastasia (Billy Twomey), 4, 58.28.

ACCENTURE SPEED STAKES: 1 Britain's Fresh Direct Glenwood Springs (Tim Stockdale), 43.56 seconds; 2 Germany's Pontifex (Lutz Gripshover), 43.82; 3 Britain's Gem Of India (John Whitaker), 44.08.

CLARION CHRISTMAS STAKES: 1 Germany's Gitania 8 (Marcus Ehning), 0/0 faults, 34.52 seconds; 2 Germany's Loreana (Lars Nieberg), 0/0, 35.16; 3 Belgium's Tymoon (Philippe le Jeune), 0/4, 33.78.