ISTANBUL, Turkey – Norwegian athlete Jakob Ingebrigtsen retained his 1500m title at the European Indoor Championships on Friday, breaking the championship record with a time of 3:33.95. In doing so, he captured his 10th European title overall, four of which are indoor titles.
The gold medal performance at the Ataköy Arena in Istanbul improved on the previous championship record of 3:36.70, set by Ukraine’s Ivan Heshko in Madrid, Spain, on 6 March 2005.
Ingebrigtsen finished ahead of Neil Gourley of Great Britain, who clocked 3:34.23 for the silver medal, while Azeddine Habz of France claimed bronze in 3:35.39.
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“I had a great fight with Gourley. I really appreciate him. I know he was preparing well for this championships,” Ingebrigtsen said.
“I am very happy with the outcome and will just focus on tomorrow’s race. For me, it’s important to always race and participate in as many races as I can.”
Ingebrigtsen, the 1500m Olympic champion and world 5,000m champion, successfully captured the first half of his double hunt from the championships in Torun, Poland, in 2021. He is aiming to repeat as the 1500m and 3,000m champion.
The Norwegian star’s victory was never in doubt as he ran a comfortable 3:50.29 for third place in the heat on Thursday, and then dominated the final.
The 22-year-old has made it a priority to compete in as many races as possible to achieve his ultimate goal of becoming the greatest runner of all time.
“It’s important for me to compete in as many races as possible. It’s also important for the fans,” Ingebrigtsen said. “My goal is to become the greatest runner of all time, and to succeed, I still have to win races.”
Gourley, who lost to Ingebrigtsen, acknowledged the Norwegian’s talent and ambition. “I got beaten by someone who was just better,” Gourley said.
“I have to take that on the chin and move forward for the outdoor season because we have built up some momentum going into it.”
