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Daily Mail
15-05-2025
- Sport
- Daily Mail
Double Olympic gold medallist Jakob Ingebrigtsen gives emotional statement on final day of his father's criminal trial over childhood 'physical and emotional abuse' against him
Double Olympic gold medallist Jakob Ingebrigtsen insisted he had 'no motives for lying' and admitted he felt 'embarrassed' at being the victim of alleged domestic violence on the final day of his father's criminal trial. Jakob, 24, gave an emotional statement in which he also said he would carry 'baggage' from the case against his father Gjert, 59. Prosecutors are seeking a prison sentence of two-and-a-half years for Gjert, who has pleaded not guilty to the alleged physical and emotional abuse of Jakob and his sister Ingrid, 19. Jakob at the start of the trial told the court of his father's 'manipulation' and how he was subject to beatings while he was just a child. Gjert, who coached Jakob to gold in the 1,500m at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, allegedly hit an eight-year-old Jakob on several occasions due to behaviour at school and being late for a race. Prosecutors allege Gjert Ingebrigtsen struck Jakob Ingebrigtsen numerous times after he received a negative report while still in primary school. The Norwegian track star also described other traumatising incidents during four hours of testimony when the trial began in Sandnes, Norway. Jakob also told the court of how his teenage years were particularly tough and that his father, who he called the 'defendant', aimed to disturb his relationship with now-wife Elisabeth Asserson, who he met at 16 years of age, by calling the couple 'terrorists'. And on Thursday he delivered another powerful statement to the court, with a verdict expected on June 16. 'It is embarrassing to be a victim of domestic violence,' said the reigning Olympic 5,000m champion. 'I know what I have experienced with the defendant since I was a little boy, and I have had no motives for lying. 'It is embarrassing to be a victim for our family, and it does not fit into the image you have of yourself and your family. We will all carry baggage with us from this trial. 'I feel a great sense of relief now that I no longer have to hide anything. Will this affect me as an athlete? Absolutely. But it has also brought us siblings and my new family closer together. That means more than anything else.' Jakob's sister Ingrid said on Thursday: 'Five years ago I never thought I would live the life I live now. I have freedom and can decide over my own life. 'I have also never been as close to my siblings as I am now, and I know that we have each other's backs.' Defense attorney Heidi Reisvang told the court on Wednesday that the case 'should never have come to court', according to Norwegian newspaper VG. They are asking for a full acquittal. Gjert had been the coach of Jakob and two other sons 31-year-old Filip and 34-year-old Henrik - who have both also competed at the Olympics - until 2022. The trio of runners, who are among seven Ingebrigtsen children, made public claims illustrating their father's violent methods in a joint letter back in October 2023. In an interview with Norwegian outlet VG, the brothers alleged: '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. 'We still feel discomfort and fear which has been in us since childhood.'
The Guardian
15-05-2025
- The Guardian
Jakob Ingebrigtsen tells court he has ‘had no motives for lying' as father's trial closes
The Norwegian Olympic champion Jakob Ingebrigtsen has told a court that he finds it 'embarrassing to be a victim of domestic violence' on the final day of the trial of his father and former coach, Gjert. Earlier this week, prosecutors called for Gjert to be given a jail sentence of two and a half years for hitting and verbally abusing Jakob, the Olympic 1500m champion in Tokyo and 5000m gold medallist in Paris, and his younger sister Ingrid. However on a dramatic closing day of the six-week trial, Gjert's legal team questioned the allegations against him and called for a complete acquittal. Jakob, 24, then took to the stand and told the court that his testimony from earlier in the trial about being kicked, hit, sworn at and living under a culture of fear was accurate. 'It is embarrassing to be a victim of domestic violence,' he said. 'I know what I have experienced with the defendant since I was a little boy, and I have had no motives for lying. It is embarrassing to be a victim for our family, and it does not fit into the image you have of yourself and your family,' he added. 'We will all carry baggage with us from this trial.' Earlier on Thursday, Gjert's defence attorney, Heidi Reisvang, had questioned Jakob's claim that he had been kicked in the stomach by his own father after falling off his scooter when he was seven. 'He didn't get any marks or tell anyone about it,' said Reisvang as she summed up the defence's case. 'The first time he talked about it was during police questioning.' Reisvang said that Jakob had also insisted that there were other people present, but didn't know who they were. 'There is a presumption that no one intervenes when a child falls on a scooter and gets kicked in the stomach' she added. She did acknowledge, however, that Gjert had called Jakob, 'stupid', 'terrorist', and 'a thug' in heated family discussions. Meanwhile Jakob's legal counsel, Yvonne Larsen, said the accounts of Jakob and Ingrid, who left the family home aged 15 after claiming that her father had struck her in the face with a wet towel, should be believed. 'Why would Jakob Ingebrigtsen go under questioning and talk about violence, when he is actually a superstar? Because it is true,' she told the court. 'And why would the sister move out and talk about what she has experienced?' The district court judge Arild Dommersnes told the court that he expects to announce a verdict on 16 June.
CNA
13-05-2025
- Sport
- CNA
Prosecutors seek prison sentence for Ingebrigtsen father, Norwegian media report
Norwegian prosecutors are seeking a two-and-a-half-year prison sentence for Gjert Ingebrigtsen, who is accused of abusing his twice Olympic gold medallist son Jakob and daughter Ingrid, Norwegian media reported on Tuesday. The back-to-back 5,000 metres world champion Jakob Ingebrigtsen took the stand in March, where he described a childhood marked by fear and manipulation and told the court about several incidents of violence. Gjert Ingebrigtsen has pleaded not guilty and repeatedly denied the charges. He faces up to six years in prison if convicted. His attorney did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Prosecutor Ellen Gimre said that "the clear starting point in such cases is unconditional imprisonment," according to broadcaster NRK. "In addition to the violence itself, it is also a breach of the trust between close relations. It's the constant fear of when the next episode of violence, the next threat, or the next violation will occur," said Gimre.
Reuters
13-05-2025
- Sport
- Reuters
Prosecutors seek prison sentence for Ingebrigtsen father, Norwegian media report
May 13 (Reuters) - Norwegian prosecutors are seeking a two-and-a-half-year prison sentence for Gjert Ingebrigtsen, who is accused of abusing his twice Olympic gold medallist son Jakob and daughter Ingrid, Norwegian media reported on Tuesday. The back-to-back 5,000 metres world champion Jakob Ingebrigtsen took the stand in March, where he described a childhood marked by fear and manipulation and told the court about several incidents of violence. Gjert Ingebrigtsen has pleaded not guilty and repeatedly denied the charges. He faces up to six years in prison if convicted. His attorney did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Prosecutor Ellen Gimre said that "the clear starting point in such cases is unconditional imprisonment," according to broadcaster NRK. "In addition to the violence itself, it is also a breach of the trust between close relations. It's the constant fear of when the next episode of violence, the next threat, or the next violation will occur," said Gimre.
The Guardian
13-05-2025
- Sport
- The Guardian
Court urged to jail Jakob Ingebrigtsen's father for ‘regime of repeated abuse'
The father of the Norwegian track and field superstar Jakob Ingebrigtsen should go to prison for two and a half years for 'a regime of repeated abuse' that spanned a decade, prosecutors have told a court in Norway. Summing up the state's case, the prosecutor Angjerd Kvernenes said that Jakob and his sister, Ingrid, had suffered physical and mental abuse at the hands of their father and former coach, Gjert, which began when Jakob was seven years old. In her closing arguments, Kvernenes reminded the court that Jakob, who won the Olympic 1500m title in Tokyo before winning 5,000 gold in Paris, had described how he had been punched and kicked by his father when he was still at primary school. 'Jakob has explained about fear, about unpredictability, and about how the repeated blows to his head when he was seven and a half years old have affected him further in his upbringing,' she said. 'The extent has been so great that Jakob has lived under a regime of repeated abuse over time. It has affected him. He has been affected by this continuous insecurity, fear of violence and fear of other offences.' Kvernenes pointed out that on another occasion Jakob said he had been threatened with being dragged out of a car and beaten to death unless he agreed with Gjert. 'There is no doubt that there was a culture of fear in the home as early as January 2008 when Jakob was seven years old and Ingrid was one and a half years old,' she added. 'The starting point in these cases is unconditional imprisonment.' According to the indictment, Gjert is also alleged to have used threats, coercion and violence against his 18-year-old daughter, Ingrid, including 'whipping' her in the face with a wet towel in 2022 after he had refused to let her play outside with friends. Kvernenes reminded the court that Ingrid has also alleged that Gjert had also made her cry by screaming at her while they were in a car together – and then refused to return home until she promised not to tell anyone about the incident. She said there was 'no doubt' that Gjert had also used abusive language towards his daughter and poked her on the chest and upper arm on several occasions. Gjert denies all the charges. Speaking outside court on Tuesday his attorney Heidi Reisvang said the defence would call for an acquittal when they make their closing arguments on Wednesday. 'We believe that the sentence imposed in this case is far too high,' she told the Norwegian newspaper VG. 'We believe this should not have been a case for the court in the first place. 'We have heard an extremely large number of witnesses. We cannot see that there have been any witnesses who have substantiated from the outside that there has been fear among the children, something the court must find evidence of in order to convict for a so-called regime of abuse.' The case is due to finish on Thursday, with the verdict expected at some point later in the summer.
