The three jockeys at the centre of police investigations into allegations of doping and race-fixing "maintain they have been involved in no wrong-doing", it has been claimed. According to Michael Caulfield, secretary of the Jockeys Association, Jamie Osborne, Dean Gallagher and Leighton Aspell "categorically" state their innocence.

Caulfield called on the Jockey Club quickly to restore their licences, which were withdrawn late last night, to enable them to continue to work.

Osborne, Gallagher and Aspell have been barred from riding at least until February 6th by the Jockey Club's Licensing Committee acting "to maintain public confidence in horse racing".

The decision followed the trio's arrest and subsequent release without charge on bail by officers from the Metropolitan Police investigating last year's dopings of Avanti Express and Lively Knight and other alleged incidents of race-fixing.

But the committee will hear further representations from the jockeys and their legal representatives next Wednesday when it considers whether to suspend their licences for any longer.

Yesterday Osborne issued a separate statement through his solicitor protesting his innocence. "I categorically deny any wrongdoing," the statement said in part. "I am confident in due course I will be totally exonerated.

"I hope commonsense will prevail and, following the Licensing Committee hearing next week, I will be able to resume my career."

At next week's hearing, Caulfield hopes that "the Jockey Club will finally see sense and that it has no reason to take away their licences because they have not been charged by the police or with any breaches of the Rules of Racing".

He said: "Having been involved in last night's meeting I must say it was not a good hearing.

"But the jockeys maintain they have done absolutely nothing wrong. They have no understanding of why they have been treated in this fashion.

"They are behaving themselves with incredible dignity and, despite the enormous pressure they've been under, their conduct has been exemplary.

"In my view it is the Jockey Club who may be inflaming the situation. I don't believe that the public would react in the fashion the Jockey Club thinks it would."

The Jockey Club's chief executive, Christopher Foster, denied that its action "pre-judged" the jockeys' situation.