Jakob Ingebrigtsen has never backed down from a challenge, but the World Athletics Championships in Tokyo could be the sternest test of his glittering career.
The 24-year-old Norwegian is a racing phenomenon - relentless on track, indoors, and cross country. His résumé is already stacked: 16 European senior titles, two Olympic golds (1500m and 5000m), and two world titles over 5000m.
He began 2025 in trademark fashion, sweeping 1500m/3000m doubles at both the European Indoor Championships in Apeldoorn and the World Indoor Championships in Nanjing, even setting world indoor records in the 1500m (3:29.63) and mile (3:45.15) in Lievin, France.
But an Achilles injury has kept him out all summer. He hasn’t raced outdoors this year - yet Norway has named him in their Tokyo squad, entered for both the 1500m and 5000m.
Overcoming global challenges
Recent history has not been mixed at global level. Ingebrigtsen was the pre-race favourite at both Oregon 2022 and Budapest 2023 but lost in dramatic 1500m sprint finishes to Britain’s Jake Wightman and Josh Kerr. At the Paris 2024 Olympics, he didn’t even make the 1500m podium, as Cole Hocker stormed to gold ahead of Kerr and fellow American Yared Nuguse.
Each time, though, he responded with 5000m gold - a testament to his huge resilience. So what now, in Tokyo?
Mystery surrounds his form after an injury-hit summer. Can he still be the same ruthless competitor without a single outdoor race in his legs?
“I’m not participating just for the sake of participating,” he said, confirming his Tokyo intentions.
If his indoor season was a blueprint, he could explode straight back into world-beating form. But to strike gold — in either the 1500m or 5000m — he’ll need to be at his absolute peak.
Red hot rivals
In the 1500m, the cast of rivals is fierce: reigning Olympic champion Hocker, former world champions Kerr and Wightman, and the Netherlands’ Niels Laros, Europe’s rising star. The 20-year-old Dutchman is in blistering form, with Diamond League wins in Brussels and Zurich, plus a rare 800m/5000m double at the European U23 Championships in Bergen.
France’s Azeddine Habz, the world leader with 3:27:49 this year and multiple indoor medallist behind Ingebrigtsen earlier this year, is another danger.
Over 5000m, the threats multiply: USA’s Grant Fisher, who broke world indoor records in both the 3000m (7:22.91) and 5000m (12:44.09); Sweden’s Andreas Almgren, the new European record-holder (12:44.27); France’s Jimmy Gressier, fresh from a Diamond League Final win over 3000m; and USA’s Nico Young, a rising force with a Bislett Games victory.
For Ingebrigtsen, the competition is fierce, the conditions brutal. Hot, humid Tokyo weather will demand tactical brilliance as much as raw speed.
“It can’t be that difficult,” he quipped ahead of his long-awaited comeback.
Now the world waits. Can Jakob Ingebrigtsen turn injury setback into golden redemption - or will Tokyo write another twist in the most compelling distance-running story of his generation?
