Jakob Ingebrigtsen’s father found guilty of hitting his daughter but cleared of abusing Olympic champion
The father of Jakob Ingebrigtsen has been given a 15-day suspended sentence after being found guilty of hitting the double Olympic champion’s younger sister, Ingrid, in the face with a wet towel.But Gjert Ingebrigtsen, who coached his Jakob to 1500m gold at the Tokyo Games in 2021 before their acrimonious split a year later, was acquitted of charges relating to physical and verbal abuse against Jakob.It came after a court in Norway found there was “reasonable doubt” about the vast majority of the accusations, with some family members siding with Gjert, and others with Jakob and his sister.The verdict marks another extraordinary episode in the life of the family that became huge reality TV stars after the docuseries Team Ingebrigtsen, which charted their lives and eccentric nature, became a phenomenon.However the six-week trial in the town of Sandnes painted a much darker picture of the family dynamic – particularly the incident in January 2022 when Ingrid, then 15, was hit with a towel after her father refused to let her play outside with friends.
Afterwards Ingrid went to her brother Henrik’s house, where a photograph was taken of a red mark,That photo was later shown in court,“Ingrid’s explanation is significantly strengthened by other evidence,” the court said in its ruling,“She left the house and moved out,The defendant, in turn, sent her a message the next day in which he strongly regretted the incident, emphasising that he needed help and that he wanted to see a doctor and psychologist.
“The court also considers Ingrid’s explanation to be credible.It is difficult to see that she would have been motivated to make false accusations against her father.The court therefore assumes as proven beyond reasonable doubt that the defendant hit Ingrid in the face with a blow with a small and damp towel.”Ingrid, who left the family home at 15 years old after being struck with the towel by her father, was awarded compensation of 10,000 kroner (£744).However the court said that the prosecution’s other allegations could not be proven.
They included an incident in 2008 where Jakob claimed his father had punched him in the head “many times” when he was eight – with one brother agreeing with Jakob but another saying Gjert had pulled him against a wall and yelled at him.Prosecutors had called for Gjert to be jailed for two and a half years for what they told the court was a “regime of physical and verbal abuse” towards Jakob and Ingrid, which spanned a decade.In court Gjert accepted that he had sometimes been demanding while coaching his three sons, Jakob, Henrik and Filip, to major international titles.The 59-year-old also acknowledged that he had thrown the family PlayStation out of a window after a row.However, he denied any abuse.
In its ruling on Monday the court said that the evidence from school friends, athletes and TV crews indicated that there had not been a longstanding culture of fear in the house.“Although Jakob and his brothers and spouses have given credible statements, the overall weight of the statements and other evidence that has been reviewed means that the court must conclude that there is reasonable doubt about the defendant’s guilt,” it said.In a statement, Gjert’s lawyer, John Christian Elden, said that the case had put an enormous burden on his client.“The decisive factor in the court’s conclusion was that there was no evidence that Gjert Ingebrigtsen created a continuous fear in his children.The court has particularly emphasised that several close family members and outside witnesses have not seen or experienced abuse.
“This case has no winners, and today’s verdict shows that all those affected have been exposed to an enormous burden that should have been avoided.”Mette Yvonne Larsen, the legal counsel for Jakob, said her client found the decision “very strange” but was keen to move on.“He was surprised, but he was prepared for it.We talked about this last night, that it was a possible outcome,” she added.“Both the little sister and Jakob are considered to be so credible, and that is positive.
”Both parties have 14 days to appeal.
The trial that gripped Norway like a soap opera has ripped apart track and field’s most famous family | Sean Ingle
The moment that ripped apart track and field’s most successful and eccentric family came in January 2022, after the 15‑year‑old sister of the Tokyo Olympic 1500m champion Jakob Ingebrigtsen was grounded by her father after school.At that point, Jakob and his brothers Filip and Henrik, were all European, world or Olympic champions, having trained like professionals since before they were teenagers. They were also major TV stars in Norway thanks to the docuseries Team Ingebrigtsen, where they appeared alongside their coach and father, Gjert.Gjert, whose manner could make an army drill sergeant sound touchy-feely, outlined his philosophy early in series one. “I don’t want to be an angry man, I want to be a father,” he said
Spaun deserves his dream but US Open chaos did not get best from world’s elite | Ewan Murray
There should be no sense of demeaning JJ Spaun’s US Open glory if observers question the circumstances. Spaun, not so long ago a journeyman professional, played out his dream by holing out from 65ft on the final green at Oakmont.Spaun is a prime example of how the penny can drop for golfers at different stages. Now 34, he is in the form of his life and bound for the Ryder Cup. When he talked later of being awake at three o’clock on Sunday morning because his young daughter was vomiting, his relatability only grew
Hamilton reveals distress over ‘devastating’ groundhog accident at Canadian F1 GP
Lewis Hamilton has spoken of his distress after his Ferrari struck a groundhog during the Canadian Grand Prix on Sunday, describing the accident as “devastating”.The incident occurred 13 laps into the race, damaging the underside of Hamilton’s car and leaving him distraught. He had qualified in fifth on the grid and had been hoping to make inroads on those ahead of him while managing his tyres. But the accident cost him half a second per lap and was followed by other problems with the car.The 40-year-old Briton finished sixth in a race won by George Russell, well behind the leading contenders
Nezza sings national anthem in Spanish at Dodgers as protest against immigration raids
Singer Vanessa Hernández says she chose to sing the Spanish version of the US national anthem at Dodger Stadium on Saturday as a protest against recent immigration raids.Hernández, who performs under the name Nezza, says she was warned by a member of the Dodgers staff before the team’s game against the San Francisco Giants to perform the anthem in English.After her performance Hernández posted a video to TikTok, with the caption “Watch the Dodgers tell me I can’t sing the Spanish Star Spangled Banner that Roosevelt literally commissioned in 1945 – so I did it anyway.” The video shows an apparent conversation with the Dodgers staff member. “We are going to do the song in English today, so I don’t know if that wasn’t translated – er, communicated,” the employee says
ICC ready to back WTC four-day Tests in boost for smaller nations
The International Cricket Council is ready to sanction four-day Tests in the World Test Championship to help smaller nations to play more games and longer series.In the next WTC cycle, which begins with Sri Lanka hosting Bangladesh in a two-Test series on Tuesday, only five-day Tests are permitted by the ICC which has led to an emphasis on truncated series.Of the 27 Test series to be played among the nine countries contesting the 2025-27 WTC, 17 will feature just two matches, there will be six three‑match series and England, Australia and India will all play one five-match Test series against each other.During discussions last week at the WTC final at Lord’s, the ICC chair, Jay Shah, is understood to have expressed his support for four‑day Tests, with a view to sanctioning them in time for the 2027‑29 WTC cycle. England, Australia and India would still be permitted to schedule five-Test series of five‑day matches for the Ashes, the Border‑Gavaskar Trophy and the newly named Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy, the first iteration of which begins with the first Test between England and India at Headingley on Friday
Hollie Doyle: ‘I just want to be the best jockey – I don’t compare myself to female riders’
The jockey’s obsession with winning will drive her on again this week on racing’s biggest stage at Royal Ascot“I’m obsessed with winning,” Hollie Doyle says calmly in response to a suggestion that she seems consumed by racing, “but I do love horses as well. So that helps, doesn’t it?”The most successful female jockey in British racing history had begun our interview with an impressively crunching handshake. Doyle’s cheerfully powerful greeting confirmed that her small but muscled frame ripples with the strength of a supreme jockey absorbed in the singular world of racing. But her daily grind is elevated by more than a thousand victories in the saddle.Doyle offers a grimace of a smile when I ask if she is anything like AP McCoy, the great jump jockey, who said that the elation of a winner usually lasted less than a minute before he felt compelled to look ahead to his next fix of a victory
Nationwide draws up bonus plan that could give CEO £7m payday
Metro Bank sobers up and attracts a suitor | Nils Pratley
UK government rollout of Humphrey AI tool raises fears about reliance on big tech
Hey AI! Can ChatGPT help you to manage your money?
Dan Evans reproduces form of old to beat Frances Tiafoe at Queen’s Club
Royal Ascot ready to roll with MPs worried future of racing is ‘on the line’