Jakob Ingebrigtsen admits he is "a long way" from the level that he expects. The maverick Norwegian made a dramatic return to racing at the European Championships in Birmingham, storming to 5,000m gold to banish skepticism surrounding his condition and his nerve to compete on the big stage following a 323-day absence after a debilitating Achilles injury.
Athletics is a star-driven sport and the 1,500m, among its most compelling events, alongside the women's 800m, depends on head-to-head duels when records, such as Josh Kerr's captivating tilt at the one mile mark in London, are not at stake.
The two great rivals, who were famously caught snoozing in Paris two years ago as Cole Hocker slipped up the inside of the rail to ***** gold, continue to bristle at each other's journeys away from the track.
Ingebrigtsen's command and control across 5,000m is mesmerising, but even if Kerr was merely provocative in his claim that "no one cares" about that event, the pure chaos of the 1,500m reigns and its former Nordic king knows all too well.
"I think a lot of people should be [disappointed in Kerr's absence from some championships]," Ingebrigtsen had remarked. "Because that is what championships are all about. It's not for us as athletes to choose almost where to participate. We have these championships for a reason, and that is for the best athletes to compete - that is the whole point.
#jakob
Athletics is a star-driven sport and the 1,500m, among its most compelling events, alongside the women's 800m, depends on head-to-head duels when records, such as Josh Kerr's captivating tilt at the one mile mark in London, are not at stake.
The two great rivals, who were famously caught snoozing in Paris two years ago as Cole Hocker slipped up the inside of the rail to ***** gold, continue to bristle at each other's journeys away from the track.
Ingebrigtsen's command and control across 5,000m is mesmerising, but even if Kerr was merely provocative in his claim that "no one cares" about that event, the pure chaos of the 1,500m reigns and its former Nordic king knows all too well.
"I think a lot of people should be [disappointed in Kerr's absence from some championships]," Ingebrigtsen had remarked. "Because that is what championships are all about. It's not for us as athletes to choose almost where to participate. We have these championships for a reason, and that is for the best athletes to compete - that is the whole point.
#jakob
3 days ago
