Olympic champion says he 'lived in fear' as dad 'would beat me until I was sick' in damning physical abuse case
26 March 2025, 12:42
The father of Athletics star Jakob Ingebrigtsen would "beat me until I was sick", the Olympain told a court during a harrowing four-hour testimony.
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Ingebrigtsen’s comments came during the opening day of a trial - set to last until mid-May - which has been described as the most high-profile in Norway’s recent history.
The 24-year-old double-Olympic champion made a series of damning claims about how his father Gjert Ingebrigtsen subjected him and his siblings to traumatic physical and psychological abuse.
That includes his younger sister Ingrid and five others. “My upbringing was very much characterised by fear. Everything was controlled and decided for me.
"There was an enormous amount of manipulation. As a teenager I felt I had no free will or say in anything,” the athlete told the court.
In one alleged attack, his father lashed out after an eight-year-old Jakob after he received a bad report about his behaviour at school.
In another incident, the runner claimed he was also hit in the face after turning up late to a race. He was also kicked in the stomach after falling off a scooter, he claimed.
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“She is a young, small girl who is in a physical confrontation with a grown, large man,” the Olympian claimed.
“I have been in that myself, but I am not her and can only imagine how traumatic that and those experiences have been for her. It was about her wanting to stop running and training. She wasn’t allowed to do that,” he added.
The world record-holder with over 30 gold medals under his belt spoke before the court just a week after winning the world indoor 1500m and 3000m titles in Nanjing last weekend.
His 59-year-old father had been the family’s athletics coach until 2022.
In October 2023, the siblings dropped their father and came forward with the claims against him in an interview with Norwegian newspaper VG.They shared how they "still feel discomfort and fear" about Gjert, who they said was "very aggressive and controlling".
He faces a prison sentence of up to six years if convicted, but has denied all allegations of violence. The trial continues.
