Jakob Ingebrigtsen describes violent childhood with ‘no free will' in testimony against father Gjert
Jakob Ingebrigtsen described living with 'no free will' during a violent childhood as he testified against his father and former coach Gjert at a trial on Tuesday.
Gjert Ingebrigtsen denies physically abusing two of his children, one of whom is double Olympic champion Jakob. The younger sibling cannot be named for legal reasons. The 59-year-old Gjert faces up to six years in prison, with the trial due to run until 16 May in Sandnes, Norway.
'My upbringing was closely tied to fear,' Jakob said. 'I've been aware of a fear-based culture for a long time. As a teenager, it was a concept I really identified with, because I felt I had no free will or say in anything. I was in an environment where everything was controlled and decided for me. There was an enormous amount of manipulation.'
During the first day of the trial on Monday, Gjert Ingebrigtsen told the court he was innocent of the charges against him. He is due to testify next week.
Gjert's intense training methods were the subject of the popular documentary Team Ingebrigtsen which shone a light on the family's almost cult-like obsession with sporting excellence, with the children put on strict professionalised training programmes at a young age.
Jakob's older brothers, Henrik and Filip, are also professional athletes, and in October 2023 the trio published a joint-letter in Norwegian outlet VG spelling out the behaviour of their father.
'We have grown up with a father who has been very aggressive and controlling and who has used physical violence and threats as part of his upbringing,' the brothers alleged in an interview with the newspaper. 'We still feel discomfort and fear which has been in us since childhood.'
The Norwegian state prosecutor later charged Gjert with beating two of his children at a time when he was also their coach. According to the court indictment, he allegedly hit and kicked Jakob and threatened to 'beat him to death'.
Jakob, 24, told the court about several incidents of violence. Prosecutors allege Gjert struck Jakob several times after he received a negative report about his behaviour from school when he was aged eight.
'I remember being extremely scared. Now I've done something seriously wrong. I'm terrified of what's going to happen,' Jakob told the court about the lead-up to the incident.
Jakob also told the court that when at age 16 he met Elisabeth Asserson, who is now his wife, his father tried to put a stop to the relationship, fearing having any relationship would harm his son's sporting career.
'I found it extremely difficult that someone like my own father could speak that way about Elisabeth, someone I cared about,' he told the court.
Gjert coached his three sons until 2022, helping Jakob to secure his first Olympic gold at Tokyo 2020 in the 1500m as he forged a glittering career as one of the world's leading athletes. After the split, Jakob added 5000m success at Paris 2024 along with a large collection of other global medals.
All three of the athlete brothers are set to testify at the trial.
additional reporting by Reuters
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