Champion jockey Murphy charged with drink driving

Oisin Murphy was British Flat racing's champion jockey three years running from 2019

Champion jockey Oisin Murphy has been charged with drink driving and failing to co-operate with police after a car crash in April.

The 29-year-old was arrested after a grey Mercedes A Class crashed into a tree in Hermitage, Berkshire.

Thames Valley Police said he has been charged with one count of driving a motor vehicle while over the prescribed limit of alcohol and one count of failing to co-operate with a preliminary test at the roadside.

"The charge is in connection with a single vehicle road traffic collision around 12.05 BST on Sunday 27 April this year when a grey Mercedes A Class left the road and crashed into a tree," police said in a statement.

Murphy, a four-time champion jockey, is due to appear at Reading Magistrates' Court on 3 July.

He was charged on 19 June, the day he rode two winners at Royal Ascot.

A British Horseracing Authority statement read: "The BHA is aware of an update issued by Thames Valley Police this afternoon regarding Oisin Murphy.

"We are now seeking to gather as much information as possible in order to consider what, if any, implications there are as a result of this development."

In October Murphy spoke to BBC Sport about how he had been having counselling, saying it had helped him greatly.

He returned from a 14-month suspension in March 2023 having been banned for breaches of Covid-19 rules and twice failing racecourse breath tests for alcohol.