At the gala in Trondheim
Running star Ingebrigtsen wins the prize – and receives a swipe
January 5, 2025 – 11:35 a.mReading time: 2 minutes
The Norwegian long-distance star and Olympic champion Jakob Ingebrigtsen received an award on Saturday. On stage he taunted his brothers.
Long-distance runner Jakob Ingebrigtsen is not only one of Norway’s track and field stars, but also one of the world’s best. At the age of 24, the 1.86 meter man has already been crowned Olympic champion twice. In Tokyo 2021 over the 1,500 meters and in Paris last year over the 5,000 meters. On Saturday evening in Trondheim, the Norwegian athletes of the year 2024 were chosen – Ingebrigtsen also received an award.
He received the athlete award. This is not awarded by the jury, but rather Norwegian athletes decide who receives it. Ingebrigtsen was honored for his achievements and his Olympic victory.
As he took the stage and accepted his award, he said: “Thank you very much, thank you to all the athletes. This is a great start to the year.” He then added: “I would especially like to thank all the children and young people who put on their sneakers and meet us on the track. We may be an inspiration to you, but you are a great inspiration to us.”
And then he couldn’t resist a joking dig at his brothers Filip Ingebrigtsen (31 years old) and Henrik Ingebrigtsen (33 years old), who are also long-distance runners. Jakob Ingebrigtsen said: “To all children and young people: Remember that you too can make your dreams come true. You can be at least as good as Henrik and Filip.”
A video from the Norwegian public broadcaster NRK shows how the room laughed after Ingebrigtsen’s words and the Olympic champion himself couldn’t help but smile. His wife Elisabeth Asserson Ingebrigtsen also had to smile. She also wrote about her partner on Instagram: “I’m proud of you.”