It has not even been 15 days since the curtain was drawn over the Paris Olympics 2024, and the Norwegian long-distance runner, Jakob Ingebrigtsen, has avenged his loss! Choosing not to hit the pause button after the biggest meet of the year, Ingebrigtsen almost immediately got back to the tracks at the Lausanne Diamond League. And in some form, his performance has just beat the likes of Cole Hocker.

In the men’s 1500m dash, Ingebrigtsen came in first with a 3:27.83 time, which is a new meet record. He not only bested his own DL record of 3:28.72 from 2023 but also defeated American athlete Hocker, who is the reigning Olympic champion. Post the same, Jakob Ingebrigtsen said, “I appreciate you coming out,“ which may be a shot fired at Josh Kerr, who missed the event this time.

After his win, Ingebrigtsen further remarked, “It’s been almost two weeks since Paris so there was plenty of time to recover. For me a lot of it has been mental including going home, taking some easy days and then getting back to work. Tonight’s race gave me good answers and I’m looking forward to building on this for my next race on Sunday and the rest of the season.”

Undoubtedly, it must have been a tiresome stretch for Ingebrigtsen. He competed in the men’s 5000m and 1500m events at Paris. But, today, the sweet sensation of a victory must seem more than compensatory. At Stade de France, Jakob Ingebrigtsen got edged out in the 1500m finals, coming in 4th. Despite being the defending Olympic champion and a medal favorite, he could not safeguard his throne, losing to Hocker.

On the contrary, it was a blistering win for the American. In 3:27.65, he wiped off the existing Olympic record set by Ingebrigtsen in Tokyo. And also clinched his first-ever Olympic medal, a shiny gold. After his win in Paris, Hocker had said, “With 100 meters to go, I knew I had enough.” But today, at the DL, it was the Norwegian who re-claimed the top spot. However, he did so in the absence of a vital rival, Josh Kerr.

Jakob Ingebrigtsen is back in the game after Paris

The men’s 1500m final was predicted to be the ultimate clash between Josh Kerr and Jakob Ingebrigtsen, the arch-rivals. However, an unanticipated third, Cole Hocker, came in and seized the day. “I told myself I was in the race too,” Hocker’s confidence did not rattle for a second. And what followed, was a golden victory for him. While Kerr was limited to a silver and Jakob was knocked off the podium. Defining this moment, the BBC Sport commentator, Steve Cram said, “The two of them tried to destroy each other. By destroying each other, Cole Hocker stepped up.”

Even today, right after the Diamond League, Ingebrigtsen perhaps made indirect jibes at Kerr. Post his win in Switzerland today, he expressed how it has been sufficiently long since Paris to have recovered. He then continued, “For some of the runners that compete in the 1500m, it’s 16 days. So if you can’t recover from a three minute race in 16 days, then you have a big problem.” All this was remarked while the Brit runner remained absent from the league.

The heated dispute between the now arch-nemesis first sparked at the 2023 World Championships. Coming second to Kerr, Jakob Ingebrigtsen called him ‘just the next guy.’ And now, it seems another fierce competitor has entered the battlefield. Do you think the level of competition has cranked up in this category? Let us know below.