Norway's Jakob Ingebrigtsen shatters 25-year-old 2-mile record
Norwegian runner Jakob Ingebrigtsen won gold at the Tokyo Olympics at 20 years old. Judging from his performance Friday, Paris could be even better next year.
With a previously unthinkable time of 7:54.10, Ingebrigtsen, now 22 years old, shattered the world record for the fastest two miles in history Friday at the Diamond League Paris meet. Basically, he ran two sub-4-minute miles, blowing away the field in the process.
Ingebrigtsen's time broke a record that had stood for more than 25 years. Kenya's Daniel Komen previously held the title with a 7:58.61 time set on July 19, 1997, the only other sub-8-minute time in history.
WORLD RECORD!
Jakob Ingebrigtsen runs the fastest 2 miles in history with 7:54.10. #ParisDL | 📺: @peacock pic.twitter.com/AbDPtOwkDZ— NBC Olympics (@NBCOlympics) June 9, 2023
Kenya's Ishmael Kipkurui finished second at 8:09.23, while Kuma Girma of Ethiopia came in third at 8:10.34.
The record was apparently something of a surprise for Ingebrigtsen, per his comments after the race via Olympics.com:
"Being able to make this record feels amazing. It is my first world best outdoors.
"The pace felt very smooth for me, coming out of the 1,500. I would say it was a good race. The public was amazing; without their help, it would have been more difficult. I was a bit surprised about the time in the end."
Ingebrigtsen first found stardom in 2021 when he captured the 1,500-meter title in Tokyo, defeating archrival Timothy Cheruiyot of Kenya for the first time in 13 races.
With the 2024 Olympics now only a year away, Ingebrigtsen will once again be a name to watch, potentially in both the 1,500-meter and 5,000-meter. He was planning to attempt the ambitious program in 2021 before dropping out of the 5,000 the week before the races.
