Luke McCann left to suffer as Jakob Ingebrigtsen again makes winning look easy

Every athlete has their own way of racing 1,500 metres and then there’s the Jakob Ingebrigtsen way, which is any which way he wants.

Completing the first half of another certain double at the European Indoor Championships in Istanbul, Ingebrigtsen this time went about it the hard way, still making it look easy. Only those left behind were truly suffering, Ireland’s Luke McCann among them.

After running bravely from the front to qualify, McCann put himself near the front again, only this was an entirely different prospect: Ingebrigtsen jogged the first half lap before darting into the lead, staying there over the next seven laps – do not attempt to pass! – before winning in a championship record of 3:33.95.

Still only 22, that makes it European senior title number 10, the young Norwegian certain to win the 3,000m on Sunday, unless he runs the wrong way. Only Britain’s Neil Gourley stayed within striking distance, finishing second in 3:34:23, also inside the old championship record of 3:36.70, which Ingebrigtsen smashed by some three seconds. Two gold medals here would bring his European senior tally to 11, and he has the confidence to pull it off, any which way he wants.

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McCann’s race fell apart over the last lap. Still fifth as Ingebrigtsen broke away with three laps remaining, that early front-running taking its toll, as he finished 10th in 3:44.55 (a fall in the first lap taking out the challenge of two others, Britain’s George Mills and the Italian Ossama Meselek).

“I wanted to be aggressive from the start and I knew that Jakob had to beat Neil but I just didn’t have it,” said McCann, the 24-year-old from Dublin racing his first senior final. “I felt okay that first 800m, but coming up to 1k I felt lactic [acid] coming in and it’s a long way home when you’re already struggling.”

In what proved the most competitive women’s pentathlon in championship history, Kate O’Connor also finished inside the top-10, ending up ninth best with a total of 4353 points, just 43 shy of her national record.

Belgium’s Nafissatou Thiam and Poland’s Adrianna Sulek both improved the previous world indoor pentathlon record, Thiam taking the win with 5,055 points, Sulek scoring 5,014, her incredible effort over the 800m not quite enough to land gold.

O’Connor’s best effort over the five events came in the shot put, throwing a new best 14.37m, the 22-year-old certainly improving with each season: “I have to be happy with that, quite proud,” she said, “all this building ultimately towards Paris.”

She started her day with a clocking of 8.56 in the 60m hurdles and cleared 1.74m in the high jump, moving up to seventh after the shot put.

Sharlene Mawdsley was the only bright light in the morning session, making it through the semi-finals of the 400m, which is were she later exited somewhat tamely, the Tipperary athlete tailed off at the back of the six-women field, finishing in 53.37, off her best of 51.91. That semi-final was won by world record holder Femke Bol of the Netherlands in 52.19.

In her 400m heat, Sophie Becker appeared to misjudge her effort to finish third in 53.43, outside her best, although Cliodhna Manning did improve to 54.21 in her heat, still well short of qualifying.

Joan Healy looked far from pleased after her run in the 60m heats, the Cork sprinter clocking 7.41 seconds to finish fifth, short of her season’s best of 7.30, which would have seen her through.

Irish in action

Saturday

6.20am – 60m Hurdles heats: Israel Olatunde

7.0am – 3,000m heats: Darragh McElhinney

7.35am – 60m Hurdles heats: Sarah Lavin

Sunday

4.25pm: 4x400m final Women