Looking for an appropriate idiomatic phrase "the joy in competing" or similar

I'm looking for an idiomatic phrase that lies between "the thrill of victory" and "the agony of defeat", in the competition itself, enjoying it for its own sake -- something like "the joy in competing" (which gets a few thousand Google hits, but not loads.) Otherwise I could go with something like "competing for the sake of enjoyment".

Does anything else come to mind?

Solution 1:

• A race well run
• A job well done
• The thrill of the game
• Hale fellows and well-met
• Better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all

might get you the kind of hits you want in about the right area.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hail_fellow_well_met

Solution 2:

You could use the following or one of its variations (example)

It's not the winning but the taking part that counts.

Which is a generalised version of Pierre de Coubertin's original quote about the modern Olympic games.

The most important thing in the Olympic Games is not winning but taking part.”

Solution 3:

(playing) for the love of the game