If anyone could do it, it was Jakob Ingebrigtsen. The 23-year-old Olympic 5000 metres gold medallist had the experts believing that, even after a long season of triumphs, he could do the impossible and win at a much longer distance without spikes at the Copenhagen Half Marathon.

After 10 kilometres in the front group, he had to make rare, suffering grimaces and stop the clock at the 10 km mark –  clearly exhausted – while favourites Jacob Kiplimo and Sebastian Sawe ran away with their eyes on victory at the finish on Øster Allé.

Sawe took the victory, and Jakob Ingebrigtsen had to fight his way home in 1:03.13, more than five minutes after the winner had broken the finish line.

‘I would never have been able to finish if it wasn’t for the crowd. It was a great event and an amazing experience. Copenhagen is a beautiful city and Norwegians and Danes are like brothers and sisters, so it was a great place to make my half marathon debut,’ Ingebrigtsen said with vigour after lying on his back on the asphalt on Øster Allé like a washed-up starfish surrounded by photographers.

The mental beacon of an athletics icon, however, has no reason to doubt himself in general and noted that he has the courage for more road races, even if the preparation and focus on world records at shorter distances on the track is not yet enough for a victory in the half marathon at the end of the season.

‘I would like to return [to Copenhagen] in 2026, but maybe not for the half marathon,’ said Ingebrigtsen, referring to the fact that the organisers of the Copenhagen Half Marathon will host the World Athletics Road Running Championships in Copenhagen in 2026. Fittingly, Ingebrigtsen’s birthday is on 19 September and the event is held 19-20 September 2026.

Norwegian record in both the 10km and half marathon
But Ingebrigtsen’s time of 27 minutes and 27 seconds in the 10km was not entirely in vain. It also set a Norwegian national record, previously held by Zerei Kbrom since 2021 (27:39).

While Jakob Ingebrigtsen may have had bigger ambitions than a Norwegian national record in the 10 km, Karoline Grøvdal was more stable in her pursuit of records. The European champion finished seventh among all women on the full distance, but time was of the essence.

With a finishing time of 1 hour, 6 minutes and 55 seconds, the 34-year-old cut 39 seconds off her own Norwegian record for the distance. It was set in 2023 – also at the Copenhagen Half Marathon.