There is an old adage in horseracing that racehorse owners should keep themselves in the best company and their horses in the worst. Because horseracing is all about winning, right?

Or is it? What about sportsmanship and taking part? It was a topic tackled briefly by ITV Racing’s pundits, in January, when discussing whether the mare Lossiemouth would be best directed at the Mares’ race at the Cheltenham Festival, or the Champion Hurdle. Ruby Walsh was adamant that, in professional sport, winning any race, whatever its status, is of greater significance than simply taking part in a better race.

With mares filling three of the top five spots in the betting for the Champion Hurdle, we should be glad that not all racehorse owners share Ruby’s view. From a purely selfish spectator perspective, I’d be entirely happy if the Mares Hurdle wasn’t staged at the Cheltenham Festival at all, and that we might see all three mares (Lossiemouth, Brighterdaysahead and Golden Ace) line up for the Champion.

As a jockey, Ruby would almost certainly have subscribed to the view that “second place is simply an alternative phrase for first loser”. This is in stark contrast to a younger relative of mine who stunned her parents as a child by announcing that she’d won the class running race at her school sports day. On further questioning she clarified her statement saying, “I was first… after Thomas.”

Now, the winner’s name might not actually have been Thomas, it might have been James or Keith… but the point is that Thomas (or James or Keith) was obviously the fastest child in the class, and that the real race was to determine who would finish behind him.

Which brings me to the rumour, published in various media outlets, that some Olympic ski jumpers may be cheating by injecting Hyularonic acid into their penises; the theory being that the increased girth resulting from the injections would require a baggier skinsuit, and that the additional material in the suit would give the athletes an aerodynamic advantage in flight.

While the story may seem far-fetched, I believe that if a professional sportsman is willing to go to the lengths of injecting acid into their nether regions before jumping off an icy cliff, then we should simply declare them the victor right now. All credit to them. They are the winners. Let them enjoy the trophy. The rest of the competitors can enjoy the skiing, the taking part, and a nice glass of glühwein, safe in the knowledge that no one is going to treat their genitals as a darts board.

The connections of this week’s selection aren’t phased by taking on a short-priced favourite. Saint Segal, winner of the Richard Landale Memorial Steeplechase at Kelso in December, is 5/1 for the Game Spirit Chase at Newbury on Saturday but is nevertheless given a sporting chance to beat 8/11 favourite Lulamba.