11th-hour injury to top horseman Peter Gray.

Gray suffered a broken leg and a cracked and dislocated shoulder on Saturday when he fell on the cross-country course at the Montacute Horse Trials in Somerset, England.

His horse, Somers Deveraux, landed on top of him causing injuries that will keep him out of action long after the Barcelona Games have ended.

"He was in surgery for two-and-a-half hours on Saturday afternoon and is likely to be in hospital for between 10 days and two weeks,'' said Bermuda Equestrian Federation president Mary-Frances Gaglio. "Everyone is devastated.'' Mary Jane Tumbridge and Nicola DeSousa, who were also in action in Somerset on Saturday, were extremely upset after the accident, said Gaglio. "They were just horrified.'' The pair will now have to compete in Barcelona as individuals, as Bermuda no longer has the minimum three riders required for a team.

Gray's injury was the second blow to hit Bermuda's three-day event team in less than a week, coming hot on the heels of the news that Dennis Cherry and his mount Bermuda Connection had been axed from the line-up for Barcelona.

"I think Nicola and Mary-Jane could do very well,'' said a disappointed Gaglio yesterday. "I hope they pull out all the stops.'' Gaglio, who is Bermuda's chef d'equipe, heads for Barcelona next Saturday, where she will be joined on July 21 by Tumbridge, DeSousa and dressage specialist Suzie Dunkley.

Meanwhile, Michael Collins, who owns Gray's Olympic horse Hino, headed for his home in Somerset yesterday armed with `Get Well' cards from Gray's equestrian friends in Bermuda.

Gray's untimely injury dashed his chances of competing at his third consecutive Olympics, having represented Bermuda both in Los Angeles and in Seoul.

"It's a big disappointment,'' said BEF spokesman Mike Cherry. "It means we don't have a team any more.'' PETER GRAY -- Recuperating in hospital bed.