Jakob Ingebrigtsen to hunt down the world record

He has been THE tough guy of the middle-distance pelotons for the past three years. He is the one all his rivals have their eye on, apprehensive about what tactics he’s going to use, to try to match him or surprise him. The Olympic 1,500 m champion in 2021, world 5,000 m champion a year later, Jakob Ingebrigtsen blends a crazy amount of talent and iron discipline, shaped by his father Gjert, who has trained him to become a champion from a very early age.

In Paris, ‘Jakob’, as he’s known by his fellow competitors, will have his sights on a single goal: to post the best performance in the world of all time over 2 miles. The distance has seldom been run over the past thirty years, but scanning the past record times makes your head spin. Right at the top of the leader board is Kenyan Daniel Komen, who also holds the unbreakable world 3,000 m record (7’20’’67). Setting a time of 7’58’’61 in July 1997 in Hechtel (Belgium), Komen is the only person to have covered 3,218 m in under 8’. The greats of the running circuit have tried to imitate him and surpass him, including Haile Gebrselassie, Mo Farah and Eliud Kipchoge, no less. However, every one of them has come a cropper when attempting to rival his supersonic time. Such is the scale of the challenge that Ingebrigtsen, someone who is not afraid of anything or anyone, has set himself.

The race will not count towards the Diamond League ranking, but it will kick off the evening in style on Charléty’s blue track as the start will be slotted in between the men’s 110 m and 400 m hurdles series. The first highlight of the night then, before a virtuoso display of staggering performances and top times.

Wavelight inaugurated in Paris

To assist him on his quest, the Norwegian may well be counting on the support of Wavelight technology, which will debut at the Charléty Stadium. This luminous device, which enables athletes taking part in endurance events to easily adapt their pace according to LED lighting posted on the rail inside the track, will also be used in the 800 m, the 3,000 m steeplechase and the 5,000 m. Some first-class pacesetters are also planning to support Ingebrigtsen and get him up to speed with the incredibly fast target pace he’ll need to successfully complete his mission.

Since February 2022, he has already pocketed the world indoor 1,500 m record in 3’30’’60. This spectacular performance wasn’t set just anywhere either. It actually took place at the Liévin meeting, a venue familiar to Ingebrigtsen as he’s already raced there four times in five years. Moreover, three of the four best timed performances of his career were set in the Pas-de-Calais department of northern France. To date, Jakob has only run in Paris once before, securing fourth place in the 1,500 m in 2019. Since then, he has taken on a whole new dimension to become the man all middle-distance runners dream of beating. At 22, with his tattoos, his sturdy character and his already substantial track record, it’ll feel as if a rock star has arrived in Paris on 9 June for an exclusive show. It will last just a matter of minutes, but it will be well worth seeing.