ANDREW Nicholson, the Marlborough based New Zealand rider who holds the record for the highest number of completions at Badminton, managed to get a four-star run in at the Rolex Kentucky three-day event in the United States last weekend.

It was well worth the long trip for the veteran 50-year-old, who has competed at six Olympic Games, as he finished seventh on rising star Qwanza, who moved up 17 places from the opening dressage phase.

"Qwanza is a horse I've always had an awful lot of faith in,” he said. “I don't have many mares competing, but she's very tough and gives me 100 per cent. She sometimes tries a little hard in dressage, which young horses tend to do, but jumping is no problem for her.”

The nine-year-old mare, who Nicholson rides for owners Rosemary and Mark Barlow, certainly proved that with a clear inside the time cross country and a flawless show jumping round.

Nicholson added: “She felt like she was on springs in the show-jumping warm-up and then jumped a fantastic clear. Qwanza has the talent to match her courage - exciting for the future.”

Nicholson also took another of his up and coming horses, 10-year-old Calico Joe, who was well placed in 10th after dressage. However the horse retired cross country at fence nine, the Bridgestone Park Question, which caught out a large percentage of the field.

“I was disappointed for Calico Joe - he was giving me a good ride until this coffin type fence,” he added. “He went to kneel on the rail as he saw the ditch and the frangible pin broke - the rail came down and he stopped. It was just a young horse's mistake and I decided to retire him and keep him for another day.”

Nicholson is also among the Chatsworth CIC*** entries with his top ride Nereo, the 2010 World Championship bronze medallist who was runner-up at Burghley last autumn and is a strong contender for an Olympic team place.

n WHILE the Badminton Horse Trials fell victim to the wet weather this week, event riders are increasingly switching to show jumping events on all weather surfaces.

Laura Collett made her presence felt when she went to the Summerhouse Equitation Centre’s BS show jumping near Gloucester.

She scored a hat-trick, starting with a win in the Newcomers on Strides Controe, the bay five-year-old owned by her mother Tracey Collett and who won at the Larkhill BE event last month.

Noble Bestman then topped the 1.20m Open and Collett was first and second in the 1.30m Open on Allora 3 and Rayef.

Other event riders to win classes included Wayne Garrick, Tim Rogers and Louise Skelton.