Jakob Ingebrigtsen’s

track and field season has been a rollercoaster of triumphs and setbacks. After soaring expectations, the Norwegian star fell short in the 1500m, leaving fans stunned. But champions don’t stay down for long. With fierce determination, Ingebrigtsen stormed back in the 5000m, securing a gold medal and reminding everyone why he’s a force to be reckoned with. His next challenge? The Diamond League finals in Brussels, where the stakes were higher than ever.

Amidst a stacked field, the 23-year-old lined up as the favorite, and he delivered. In front of a roaring crowd, Ingebrigtsen claimed his third Diamond League title, crossing the finish line with a time of 3:30.37—his slowest in a DL race since May 2023, but fast enough to earn him the coveted Diamond Trophy. The victory felt like the perfect conclusion to his season, but Jakob wasn’t done just yet.

With a cryptic announcement, he teased fans, “Diamond! 💎🇳🇴 What a great way to end the season. Or…?“. Just 36 hours after his win, Ingebrigtsen surprised the world by making his half-marathon debut at the Copenhagen Half

However, his contention wasn’t as exciting for many. Reddit user AnotherDetour voiced his opinion on r/trackandfield. “Ingebrigtsen finishes Copenhagen Half in 1:03:13. It kinda looks like he went for a 10k PB and died afterward – he flat out stopped after the 10k mark but eventually decided to keep running.” It could’ve been fatigue from running in Brussels, or he might not have been as prepared, but 2x Olympic Champion finished in 63:13 in the 34th position. 

In a post-race interview, Jakob Ingebrigtsen confessed what went through his mind. “Twenty-one km is definitely too long! I’m definitely not going to try again for a couple of years. It’s fun but tough. I tried to stay with the leading group for as long as I could.” The 23-year-old kept up with the lead group until the 10km mark, but he slowed down after setting a new Norwegian record – 27:27, well under his previous best of 27:54. But the fans weren’t too pleased with him. 

The track and field community has a bone to pick with Jakob Ingebrigtsen

Several other fans stormed to the thread on Reddit to voice their opinions. One fan stated, “The guy is at the the worst possible time of his season to do this. He’s far from his aerobic base and fried from 1500m racing.” After his stint in the French capital, the 23-year-old has been unstoppable. He contested in 3 DL races right after. This fan believes that could have resulted in his sub-par performance in Copenhagen.

Another fan agreed, “Too many people got on the hype train for this one saying he would go under 60. Has he even ran a competitive half in his life? Plus, he just finished a 5k like 36 hours ago…in another country.” While they reiterated that Ingebrigtsen did a good job, the fans highlighted how his lack of preparation could have been his downfall. The Olympian’s brother, Henrik, acknowledged this was uncharted territory for the 23-year-old.

A fan exclaimed, “Not sure if he significantly underestimated how hard 58-minute half pace is, or whether it was always his intention to stop at 10k.” Several others pointed out he might have been trying to keep up with the race leaders, which Ingebrigtsen affirmed in his post-race interview. Another fan disagreed, “Anyone stating he was just going for the Norwegian 10k record is living in a state of denial.” This fan believed the Olympian may have bit off more than he could chew. 

One fan pointed out, “For someone so scientific with their training, he knows he’s “around 21kmh” for threshold pace. So he knows he’s guna struggle at 58min pace. But he was cooked at 10km.” His coach employs a data-driven approach to training, and many fans believe it should have come up sooner. Do you agree with the fans?