Jakob Asserson Ingebrigtsen easily advanced to the final of the 5000 meters at the Olympics, but a near-miss with an inattentive cameraman created significant drama.
Wednesday’s qualification was comfortable for Ingebrigtsen. The 23-year-old positioned himself at the back of the field but had no problems advancing when the final tickets were up for grabs.
However, towards the end of the race, disaster almost struck when Ingebrigtsen almost collided with a cameraman in a turn. The cameraman had carelessly placed himself in the running lanes.
“That’s something that shouldn’t happen,” Ingebrigtsen told NRK, still visibly shaken. “Fortunately, I had good awareness, was well positioned, and was slightly off the track. Thus, I could run well on the outside.”
The incident sparked strong reactions.
“That could have ended badly. That man with the camera needs to watch out. He isn’t paying attention at all,” commentator Jann Post said. “That was scary. A camera operator following the women’s javelin qualification was standing right in the running lane when the whole field came thundering through. Fortunately, it turned out okay,” added Vebjørn Rodal.
Ingebrigtsen won his heat ahead of Biniam Mehary from Ethiopia, mirroring his compatriot Narve Gilje Nordås, who also won his qualifying heat on Wednesday.
With top contenders Joshua Cheptegei and Jacob Kiplimo absent, Ingebrigtsen is considered one of the favorites in the distance. The Norwegian star has three European Championship and two World Championship golds in the 5000 meters but is yet to win an Olympic gold.
Failure
In the final of the 1500 meters on Tuesday evening, Ingebrigtsen finished fourth, falling short of his gold-medal defense from Tokyo in 2019.
Despite his blistering pace from the start, Ingebrigtsen was unable to hold on in the final stretch.
“I am, of course, disappointed with the result,” Ingebrigtsen said. “I felt extremely good from the start. I opened at 54, which is often two seconds too fast, so I realize we are heading into a dangerous place. I feel almost a bit too good, perhaps because I have had a somewhat unusual progression this season. It was hard to hold back.”
The final of the 5000 meters will take place on Saturday evening.