Top jockey guilty of doping charges

Top jockey Lisa Cropp has been found guilty of riding with the class A drug methamphetamine in her system by the racing industry's judicial authority.

The decision comes almost four years after Cropp returned a urine sample at the Te Rapa races which was found to contain extremely high levels of methamphetamine.

Methamphetamine is a class A restricted drug that is banned in racing for reasons of safety rather than performance enhancement.

The judicial committee that heard the case said that the evidence against her met the "exacting and high standard of proof" required because of the serious nature of the charges and the inevitable effects on conviction upon Cropp's reputation and livelihood.

Hearing the charges was delayed while Cropp unsuccessfully pursued challenges through to the Supreme Court of the right of the committee to hear the case and the right of New Zealand Thoroughbred Racing to take body samples for drug testing.

While the case against her was sidelined, Cropp won races worth almost
$8 million, broke the record for the number of winning rides in a season and won the jockey premiership three times.

A telephone conference is to be held next week to set a date to determine penalty and costs. Cropp will inevitably face a ban.