KEY POINTS:
Top jockey Lisa Cropp has won races worth almost $8 million in the more than three years that drugs charges against her have been sidelined.
The hearing of charges that she rode under the influence of methamphetamine were delayed while Cropp unsuccessfully took her objections challenging the right
of racing's judicial committee to hear the case and the right of New Zealand Thoroughbred Racing (NZTR) to take body samples for drug testing all the way to the Supreme Court.
In the time since she returned the positive sample on May 7, 2005:
* Cropp broke the record for the number of winning rides in a season, won the jockey premiership three times and rode more than 450 winners for stakes of $7.9 million. Jockeys get 5 per cent of prize money, plus a riding fee of about $106 (besides any "sling" from the horses' connections) bringing Cropp's racing earnings to $872,000.
* Under a new rule, prompted by the Cropp case, she would have needed the permission of NZTR's chief executive to continue riding pending resolution of her case.
* Sports Minister Trevor Mallard, under parliamentary privilege, accused her of cheating, during debate on a sports anti-doping bill that is now law.
The case against her was outlined before the Judicial Control Authority more than three years ago. Cropp was due to open her defence on Monday but has been granted a further adjournment until Wednesday because her case was not ready.
The further delay follows the request yesterday by lawyer Barry Hart to withdraw. Mr Hart has led Cropp's defence and appeals. He will be replaced by Antony Shaw, a Bill of Rights specialist, who had made legal submissions on Cropp's behalf.
Mr Shaw told the judicial committee he had only just learned of Mr Hart's intention to withdraw and needed more time to prepare.
Committee chairman Geoff Hall said "late notification of Mr Hart's intention to withdraw" was a reason for allowing a further delay.
The committee did not say whether Mr Hart had given a reason for his withdrawal or late notice.
Mr Hart did not return the Weekend Herald's phone calls in time for inclusion in this report.
Prosecutors Brian Dickey and Crown Solicitor Simon Moore opposed the adjournment.
Methamphetamine is a class A drug which carries jail sentences for manufacturing and supplying. It is banned in sports. Possible benefits for a jockey include increased stamina, aggression and concentration while suppressing appetite.
It is banned by racing authorities for reasons of safety, rather than performance enhancement.
Cropp returned a positive urine test for methamphetamine at the Te Rapa races in May 2005. She was charged with riding with methamphetamine in her system or, alternatively, that her sample contained methamphetamine.
She denies ever taking the drug.
Cropp argued that requiring a urine sample from her breached "a fundamental right to bodily privacy and integrity".
But the Supreme Court unanimously ruled in June that the drug test was legal under the Racing Act and did not infringe Cropp's human rights. It ordered her to pay $15,000 costs.
If found guilty, Cropp faces amaximum ban of 12 months and afine of $10,000. The NZTR has indicated it would seek costs if the chargewas proven.
Lisa Cropp's long ride
* May 7, 2005: Cropp selected for random drug test. Scientists said the sample contained methamphetamine at 100 times the level that triggers a positive. Cropp denies taking the drug.
* July 2005: Cropp rides 197 winners for season, breaks record. Her mounts win stakes of $1.9 million.
* July 2006: Cropp wins jockey premiership with 146 winners for stakes of $2.1 million.
* July 2007: Cropp wins premiership, with 146 winners for stakes of $2.9 million.
* July 2008: Cropp is runner-up in premiership with 116 winners for stakes of $2.4 million.