Father of Olympic Champion Ingebrigtsen to Face Trial on Abuse Allegations

Jakob Ingebrigtsen secured 1500m gold at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics and 5,000m gold at the Paris 2024 Olympics. His father, Gjert Ingebrigtsen, is scheduled to face trial next year following charges of alleged physical and mental abuse against his son, the Olympic 5,000m champion. Last year, Jakob, aged 24, along with his brothers Filip, 31, and Henrik, 33, all of whom are Olympic athletes, publicly alleged that their father, who served as their coach until 2022, had engaged in violent behavior. Gjert Ingebrigtsen, who maintains his innocence regarding any criminal wrongdoing, had previously been charged with physical abuse by Norwegian police in April. The 58-year-old was formally indicted on November 29, and the Norwegian public prosecutor’s office informed BBC Sport that legal proceedings are anticipated to occur in the first half of 2025. In a statement, Gjert’s legal representatives, John Christian Elden and Heidi Reisvang, affirmed: “Gjert Ingebrigtsen maintains what he has said all along, that he does not admit criminal guilt for the offences he has been charged with and that he has never subjected any of his children to either physical or mental abuse.” Last year, Jakob, Filip, and Henrik detailed accusations of physical violence and abusive conduct against their father in a column published in a Norwegian newspaper. The three brothers, who are part of the seven Ingebrigtsen children, stated in writing that they “still feel discomfort and fear” concerning Gjert, whom they characterized as “very aggressive and controlling”. Gjert, who resigned from his coaching role for his sons in 2022 following Jakob’s 1500m gold medal win at the Tokyo Olympics, conveyed through his lawyer that the aforementioned statement was “baseless” and that he “never used violence against his children”. While Gjert was charged with a single offence in April, five other related cases were dismissed due to insufficient evidence, and another case was dropped because of time limitations. Mette Yvonne Larsen, legal counsel for five of the Ingebrigtsen children, informed the Norwegian website VG that they intend to appeal at least one of the cases that were dismissed. Public prosecutor Birgitte Budal Lovlund stated to BBC Sport: “I can confirm that Gjert Ingebrigtsen on November 29th was indicted by our office for physical and mental abuse of his son Jakob Ingebrigtsen. “The case has been forwarded to the district court of Sor-Rogaland for planning. The prosecution has requested that at least 30 days be set aside for the legal proceedings that are expected to take place during 2025, preferably the first half of the year. This, however, is up to the court to decide.” Beyond his two Olympic titles, Jakob holds the distinction of being a two-time 5,000m world champion, a two-time world 1500m silver medallist, and an 11-time European champion. His brothers, Henrik and Filip, achieved European 1500m championship titles in 2012 and 2016, respectively. BBC Sport has sought comment from Jakob Ingebrigtsen’s representatives.