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.
