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He had won numerous continental titles while still a teenager. He won Olympic gold in a European record time at the age of 20. And now, at the age of 21, Jakob Ingebrigtsen can call himself a world record-holder.
The Norwegian middle-distance runner, opening his 2022 campaign at the Meeting Hauts-de-France Pas-de-Calais on Thursday (17), took almost half a second off the world indoor 1500m record*, winning at the World Athletics Indoor Tour Gold meeting in Lievin in 3:30.60.
Paced by Julien Ranc, and then Erik Sowinski, Ingebrigtsen passed through 600m in 1:24.66 and 800m in 1:52.86. He reached 1000m in 2:20.98, bang on target, and then started to pick up the pace for the final two laps. By the time he reached the bell in 3:03.04, he had opened up a significant gap on his one remaining opponent: the previous world indoor record-holder and 2018 world indoor champion Samuel Tefera.
Ingebrigtsen covered the final lap in 27.57 seconds, reaching the finish line in 3:30.60 to take 0.44 off Tefera’s world indoor record. Tefera finished second in 3:33.70 and Spain’s Ignacio Fontes was a distant third in 3:37.39.
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“This is always a fast race and it’s a really nice arena,” said Ingebrigtsen, who won in Lievin last year in a European indoor record of 3:31.80. “I like to finish strong; I think it’s nice for the crowd but it’s also nice for me to speed up going into the finish.”
Aside from Ingebrigtsen’s world indoor record, five other world-leading marks were set on an outstanding night of indoor action.
*Subject to the usual ratification procedure
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