Last week, COROS NIL student-athletes had the opportunity to meet with two-time Olympic champion Jakob Ingebrigtsen virtually as part of the program's larger professional athlete mentorship series. 

Throughout the year, student-athletes meet with COROS professionals to discuss various factors that go into performing at a high level in the sport. MileSplit and FloTrack sat in on the call.

Much of the conversation centered around championship racing and mentality as most U.S. high school athletes are rounding into the cross country postseason. The COROS team steered the conversation to begin the call with Ingebrigtsen, but then the floor was opened to the high school athletes – and they didn’t hold back. 

The beauty of the mentorship program is that it is unfiltered. NextGen athletes asked meaningful questions that provoked thoughtful responses from Ingebrigtsen. He was incredible in his demeanor and extremely willing to answer all of the questions posed to him.

One athlete asked him to reflect back and think about advice he would give to his younger self. 

“There are a lot of mistakes that are very difficult to learn by watching on YouTube or hearing some people give advice,” Ingebrigtsen said. “Some mistakes just need to be… you have to do it yourself and fail in different circumstances and in the different (race) tactics.”

“So when you’re in a very important race afterwards, all of these lessons let you make the best choices and the best decisions in a split second,” he continued. “And that is very difficult advice to give my younger self because you kind of have to do it and try and fail and try and fail before you succeed.”

As an onlooker in this call, I was reminded of my high school days. I was at a running camp and had the privilege of learning from Mary Cain in a similar Q&A style seminar. She was a 19-year-old professional and had just come off one of the most successful high school careers that the U.S. had ever seen on the women’s side. The 200 of us in that room were sponges to her information.

So as I sat in on this call with Jakob and 40 high school students, I was blown away by the opportunity they had in front of them. Access to some of the best athletes in the world? The likes of Jakob Ingebrigtsen? 

Plus, there’s the exclusivity of it. There were about 40 student-athletes in the call, the size of a large classroom. There was no denying the honey pot of information in front of them.

Who is Jakob Ingebrigtsen?

Jakob Ingebrigtsen is a 24-year-old Norwegian distance runner, regarded as one of the world's best at the discipline. He is a two-time Olympic gold medalist and a two-time World Champion.

In 2024, Ingebrigtsen won the gold medal in the men’s 5000m at the Paris Olympic Games. Back in 2020 at the Tokyo Olympic Games, he won men’s 1500m gold.

Additionally, he holds world records in the indoor 1500m, 2000m and 3000m, along with a world best in the two-mile.

When Ingebrigtsen was 16 years old, he became the youngest person to ever run a sub-four-minute mile, running 3:58.07.

What is the COROS NextGen Athlete Program?

The COROS NextGen Athlete program is a Name, Image and Likeness (NIL) program with the intent of providing the next generation of American distance running with tools and mentorships to help them succeed. Signed athletes are provided COROS gear, an athlete data manager and professional athlete mentorship.