Altior to miss Tingle Creek and out until March with breathing problem

Altior has been ruled out of next month’s Tingle Creek Chase and most of the jumps season, following the discovery of a breathing problem that requires surgery. The two-mile chaser’s trainer, Nicky Henderson, revealed the news on Wednesday evening, describing himself as “really disappointed”.

Henderson reported Altior had made “a whistling noise” during his work on Saturday. Further investigation led vets to conclude the horse’s larynx was not opening as it should, necessitating treatment that may keep him off the track until March.

“This has reared its ugly head at the wrong time,” Henderson said, “and there is nothing we can do about it. As a consequence, we have been forced to miss the Tingle Creek but hopefully he will be back in time for the Champion Chase at Cheltenham in March and perhaps the other championship races in the spring.

“Whether we are able to fit in a prep race, we don’t know and only time will tell. We can have racecourse gallops if we need to. The timing is brutal.”

Altior had been the hot favourite for the Tingle Creek at odds of 4-7. Un De Sceaux now heads the market at 9-4 ahead of Politologue and Fox Norton. Altior still tops the Champion Chase market at 6-4, with Douvan at 3-1.

The news has brought further attention to racing’s relationship with betting, partly because Henderson chose to make his statement through the website of an online bookmaker rather than through a news agency.

News of Altior’s setback appears to have leaked out, as social media users reported during the afternoon that his odds for the Tingle Creek were drifting with a couple of firms while the odds of his rivals shortened.