Mo Farah

Mo Farah
Mo Farah

Farah at the 2008 European Cross Country Championships
Personal information
Nationality British
Born 23 March 1983 (1983-03-23) (age 28)
Mogadishu, Somalia[1]
Residence Portland, Oregon
Height 1.75 m (5 ft 9 in)[2]
Weight 65 kg (140 lb; 10.2 st)[2]
Sport
Sport Running
Event(s) 1500 m, 3000 m, 5000 m, 10,000 m
Club Newham and Essex Beagles Oregon Track Club
Achievements and titles
Personal best(s)

800 m: 1:48.69 (Eton 2003)
1500 m: 3:33.98 (Monaco 2009)
3000 m: 7:34.47 (Birmingham 2009)
5000 m: 12:53.11 (Monaco 2011)
10000 m: 26:46.57 (Eugene 2011)

Half Marathon: 60:23 (New York 2011)

Mohammed "Mo" Farah (Somali: Maxamed Mow Faarax, Arabic: محمد فرح‎; born 23 March 1983 in Mogadishu, Somalia[1]) is a Somalia-born British international track and field athlete. On the track, he generally competes over 5000 metres and 10,000 metres, but also runs the 3000 metres and occasionally the 1500 metres. He holds the European track record for 10,000 metres, the British road record for 10,000 metres, the British indoor record in the 3000 metres, the British track record for 5000 metres and the European indoor record for 5000 metres. In July 2010, Farah won Britain's first-ever men's European gold medal at 10,000 m.[3] He followed this with a gold in the 5000 m, becoming the 5th male athlete to complete the long-distance double at the championships and the first British man to do so.[4] At the 2011 World Championships in Athletics, he won silver in the 10,000 m and gold in the 5000 m.[5]

In addition, Farah competes in cross-country running, where in December 2006 he became European champion in Italy.[6] He also took gold in the 3000 metres in both the 2009 and 2011 European Indoor Championships, in Turin and Paris respectively.

Farah was originally based in London and ran for Newham and Essex Beagles athletics club, training at St Mary's University College, Twickenham's sports facilities in Strawberry Hill from 2001 to 2011. In 2011 he relocated to Oregon, USA, in order to further his training. He is an ambassador for Bupa, Lucozade Sport and Nike. Farah was voted 2011 European athlete of the year from twelve nominees, with Christophe Lemaitre in second place.[7]

Contents

Biography

Junior career

Farah was born in Mogadishu, Somalia.[1] He grew up in Djibouti, and arrived in Britain aged 8 years old, speaking barely a word of English.[1] Farah's father, on the other hand, was born in England and grew up in Hounslow. His parents met after his father went on holiday to Somalia.[8]

Farah attended Feltham Community College in London. His athletic talent was identified by physical education teacher Alan Watkinson at Isleworth and Syon School, who later said of Farah: "When I first met him, he was struggling academically and suffering from the language barrier.[9] He needed focus and I sort of took him under my wing. His passion was football but it was his turn of speed on the pitch that showed his real talent. His ambitions consisted of playing on the right wing for Arsenal.[10] Watkinson would offer Farah the incentive of playing football for 30 minutes in the gym before taking him to the running club.

In 1996, at the age of 13, Farah entered the English schools cross country and finished ninth. The following year he won the first of five English school titles.[9]

His first major title was at 5000 metres at the European Athletics Junior Championship in 2001[11], the same year that he began training at St Mary's University College, Twickenham. That year Farah became one of the first two athletes in the newly formed Endurance Performance Centre at St Mary’s. He lived and trained at the College, and took some modules in an access course before becoming a full-time athlete as his career progressed.

Senior career

2005–2008

In 2005, Farah made an important move, moving in with Australian Craig Mottram and a group of Kenyan runners that included 10,000 metres world number one Micah Kogo. "They sleep, eat, train and rest, that's all they do but as an athlete you have to do all those things. Running with Craig made me feel more positive," Farah said. "If I ever want to be as good as these athletes I've got to work harder. I don't just want to be British number one, I want to be up there with the best."[9]

In July 2006, Farah clocked a time of 13 minutes 9.40 seconds for 5000 m to become Britain's second-fastest runner after Dave Moorcroft. A month later Farah collected the silver medal in the European Championship 5000 m in Gothenburg. Coaches Alan Storey and Mark Rowland made sure that Farah remained competitive and a few words from Paula Radcliffe before the 5000 m final inspired Farah. He has stated that: "She said to me, 'Go out and be brave. Just believe in yourself'."[9]

In December 2006, Farah won the European Cross Country Championship in San Giorgio su Legnano, Italy.[6]

Farah represented the UK at 5000 m in the 2007 World Championships in Osaka, Japan. Farah finished sixth in a time of 13:47.54.[12]

In May 2008, Farah ran 10,000 m events, claiming the fastest UK men's time for almost eight years. However, he suffered disappointment at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, being knocked out before the final in the 5000 m event.

2009–2010: British records and European champion

In January 2009, Farah set a new British indoor record in the 3000 metres, breaking John Mayock's record with a time of 7 minutes 40.99 seconds in Glasgow.[13] A few weeks later he broke his own record by more than six seconds with a time of 7 minutes 34.47 at the UK Indoor Grand Prix in Birmingham,[14] a performance which commentator Steve Cram called "the best performance by a male British distance runner for a generation".[15] Farah attributed his good form to a spell of winter training at altitude in Ethiopia and Kenya.[16] In March 2009 he took gold in the 3000 m at the European Indoor Championships in Turin, recording a time of 7 minutes 40.17.[17]

Farah shadowing Ayad Lamdassem in the 10,000 m final of the 2010 European Athletics Championships

He competed at the 2009 World Championships in Athletics: he was in the leading pack early on in the 5000 metres race and eventually finished seventh – the best by a European runner. After the championships, he scored a victory in his first road competition over 10 miles, winning the Great South Run in 46:25 to become the third fastest Briton in spite of strong winds.[18]

Farah was one of the favourites to upset Serhiy Lebid's dominance at the 2009 European Cross Country Championships.[19] However, Lebid was never in contention as Farah and Alemayehu Bezabeh were some distance ahead throughout. Farah was overtaken by Bezabeh in the latter stages of the race, leaving the Briton with a second consecutive silver medal at the competition.[20] He did not manage to attend the medal ceremony, however, as he collapsed immediately after the race and needed medical attention.[21] After a close third place behind Edwin Soi at the BOclassic,[22] he competed in the short course race at the Great Edinburgh Cross Country. He was the favourite to win and surged ahead to build a comfortable lead. However, he appeared tired in the latter stages and finished third behind British runners Ricky Stevenson and Steve Vernon. Farah again required post-race medical attention and subsequent tests revealed he had low levels of iron and magnesium. He was prescribed supplements for the condition and his high altitude training plans in Kenya were unaffected.[23]

Farah celebrating his 2010 European Championships 10,000 metres gold medal

He won the 2010 London 10,000 in late May with a British road record time of 27:44, beating 10K world record holder Micah Kogo in the process.[24] His success continued the following week at the European Cup 10,000 m as he improved his track best by nearly 16 seconds, finishing in 27:28.86. He won by a margin of over forty seconds ahead of second placed Abdellatif Meftah.[25] After training in Africa, he returned to Europe for the 2010 European Athletics Championships. He took the 10,000 metres gold medal, overtaking Ayad Lamdassem with two laps to go and finishing the race unpressured in a time of 28:24.99. This was Farah's first major title and also the first European gold medal in the event for Great Britain.[26] He then went on to win the 5000 m from Jesus Espana, becoming only the fifth man in the 66-year history of the European Championships to achieve the 5000 m/10,000 m double, and the first for 20 years, following in the footsteps of the Czech Emil Zatopek in 1950, Zdzislaw Krzyszkowiak of Poland in 1958, Finland’s Juha Vaatainen in 1971 and Salvatore Antibo, of Italy, in 1990.[4][27]

On 19 August 2010, at a Diamond League meeting in Zurich, Farah ran 5000 m in 12:57.94, breaking David Moorcroft's long-standing British record and becoming the first ever British athlete to run under 13 minutes.[28] In December 2010, Farah was named the track-and-field athlete of the year for 2010 by the British Olympic Association.[29] He closed the year at the BOclassic and just missed out on the 10K title, losing out to Imane Merga in a sprint finish by 0.2 seconds.[30]

2011: European and British records, and world medals

On 8 January 2011 at the Edinburgh Cross Country, Farah defeated the top four finishers of that year's European Championships to take victory in the long race.[31]

In February 2011, Farah announced that he would be relocating to Portland, Oregon, USA, to work with new coach Alberto Salazar. On 19 February 2011 in Birmingham, England, he broke the European 5000 m indoor record with a time of 13:10.60, at the same time taking ten seconds off the 29-year-old British indoor record of Nick Rose.[32]

On 5 March 2011, he won gold in the 3000 metres at the European Indoor Championships.

On 20 March 2011 he won the NYC Half Marathon in a time of 1:00:23.[33] He and training partner Galen Rupp had originally planned on running a 10,000 m race in New Zealand, but after it was canceled due to an earthquake and damage done to the track, they entered the half-marathon in New York.

On 3 June 2011, at a Diamond League meeting in Eugene, Oregon, USA, Farah won the Prefontaine Classic 10,000 m in 26:46.57, setting a new British and European record.[34]

On 22 July 2011, at a Diamond League meeting in Monaco, he set a new British national record in the 5000 m with a time of 12:53.11.[35] He edged out American Bernard Lagat to win.[35]

In the 2011 World Championships in Athletics, in Daegu, South Korea, Farah made a major breakthrough on the world stage by taking the silver medal in the 10,000 m and then the gold in the 5000 m.[36] He became the first British man to win a global title over either distance.[37] Farah had in fact been more strongly fancied to take the 10,000 m title, but was narrowly beaten in a last lap sprint by Ethiopian Ibrahim Jeilan. In the 5000 m he overcame Bernard Lagat, perhaps his major rival, beating him into second place. Following the race, Dave Moorcroft, former 5000 metres world record holder, hailed Farah as "the greatest male distance runner that Britain has ever seen".[38]

Personal life

In April 2010 Farah married his longtime partner Tania Nell, in Richmond, London. Other athletes at the wedding included Paula Radcliffe, Steve Cram, Hayley Yelling, Jo Pavey, and Swedish steeplechaser Mustafa Mohamed.[39] He has a six year-old step-daughter, Rihanna.[40] He is a fan of Arsenal Football Club.[41]

Achievements

Event Distance Placing
2005 European Indoor Athletics Championships 3000 m Sixth
2006 European Cross Country Championships Gold Medal[6]
2006 European Championships in Athletics 5000 m Silver medal
2006 Commonwealth Games 5000 m Ninth
2007 World Championships in Athletics 5000 m Sixth
2009 European Indoor Athletics Championships 3000 m Gold medal
2009 World Championships in Athletics 5000 m Seventh
2010 European Athletics Championships 10,000 m Gold medal
2010 European Athletics Championships 5000 m Gold medal
2011 European Athletics Indoor Championships 3000 m Gold medal
2011 World Championships in Athletics 10,000 m Silver medal
2011 World Championships in Athletics 5,000 m Gold medal

Personal bests

Surface Event Time Date Place
Outdoor Track 800 m 1:48.69 3 August 2003 Eton
1500 m 3:33.98 28 July 2009 Monaco
One mile 3:56.49 6 August 2005 London
2000 m 5:06.34 9 March 2006 Melbourne
3000 m 7:38.15 31 August 2006 Zagreb
Two miles 8:20.47 3 August 2007 London
5000 m 12:53.11 22 July 2011 Monaco
10,000 m 26:46.57 3 June 2011 Eugene
Indoor Track 1500 m 3:40.57 15 February 2009 Sheffield
One mile 4:00.46 17 February 2007 Birmingham
3000 m 7:34.47 21 February 2009 Birmingham
Two miles 8:20.95 16 February 2008 Birmingham
Road 10 km 27:44 31 May 2010 London
15 km 43:13+ 25 October 2009 Portsmouth
10 miles 46:25 25 October 2009 Portsmouth
Half Marathon 1:00:23 20 March 2011 New York City Half Marathon

+ intermediate split in longer race

References

  1. ^ a b c d This much I know: Mo Farah
  2. ^ a b "Athletes". iaaf.org. http://www.iaaf.org/athletes/biographies/letter=0/athcode=179892/index.html. Retrieved 2011-08-29. 
  3. ^ "Farah seals historic gold for Britain – Yahoo! Eurosport". Uk.eurosport.yahoo.com. http://uk.eurosport.yahoo.com/28072010/58/farah-seals-historic-gold-britain.html. Retrieved 2011-08-29. 
  4. ^ a b European Athletics Championships 2010: Mo Farah wins 5,000m gold for Britain. Daily Telegraph (2010-07-31). Retrieved on 2010-07-31.
  5. ^ Holt, Sarah (2007-09-02). "World Championships 2007 Day Nine: As It Happened". BBC website. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/athletics/6974721.stm. Retrieved 2010-05-13. 
  6. ^ a b c "Farah storms to European success". BBC website. 2006-12-10. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/athletics/6166845.stm. 
  7. ^ http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/athletics/15181590.stm
  8. ^ Brian Viner interviews Mo Farah
  9. ^ a b c d Fanin, Isaac (2007-07-26). "Farah stars, with support". BBC Sport. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/athletics/get_involved/6908213.stm. Retrieved 2008-06-23. 
  10. ^ Milmo, Cahal (2010-07-29). "How Britain's athletics hero escaped the chaos of Somalia". The Independent (London). http://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/news/mo-farah-how-britains-athletics-hero-escaped-the-chaos-of-somalia-2037996.html. 
  11. ^ "FARAH, Mo: Profile". PACE Sports Management. http://www.pacesportsmanagement.com/athlete_profile.asp?id=42. Retrieved 2008-06-23. 
  12. ^ "2008 World Championship: 5000m Results". IAAF. http://osaka2007.iaaf.org/results/gender=M/discipline=5000/combCode=hash/roundCode=f/result.html. Retrieved 2008-06-30. 
  13. ^ Farah breaks 3000m indoor record. BBC Sport (2009-01-31). Retrieved on 2009-02-03.
  14. ^ Farah breaks record in Birmingham, BBC Sport (2009-02-21). Retrieved on 2009-02-22.
  15. ^ "Funny guy Farah is now seriously fast", Guardian
  16. ^ "Mo Farah beats own record on good day for British athletes", Telegraph, 21 February 2009
  17. ^ "Farah cruises home to 3,000m gold", BBC Sport, 7 March 2009
  18. ^ Martin, Dave (2009-10-25). Farah scores tremendous victory while Monteiro destroys opposition in Portsmouth. IAAF. Retrieved on 2009-10-25.
  19. ^ Wenig, Jorg (2009-12-12). Farah: "I am in better shape than a year ago" – Euro Cross Country Championships press conference. IAAF. Retrieved on 2009-12-13.
  20. ^ Bezabeh becomes Spain's first champion, Lebid third. European Athletics (2009-12-13). Retrieved on 2009-12-13.
  21. ^ Hayley Yelling clinches shock win as Mo Farah collapses. BBC Sport (2009-12-13). Retrieved on 2010-01-12.
  22. ^ Sampaolo, Diego (2010-01-01). Three-peat for Soi in Bolzano. IAAF. Retrieved on 2010-01-12.
  23. ^ Mo Farah returns to training after medical tests. BBC Sport (2010-01-12). Retrieved on 2010-01-12.
  24. ^ Mo Farah sets new British 10,000m road record. BBC Sport (2010-05-31). Retrieved on 2010-06-06.
  25. ^ Ramsak, Bob (2010-06-06). Farah and Monteiro take European Cup 10,000m victories. IAAF. Retrieved on 2010-06-06.
  26. ^ European Athletics 2010: Brit Farah wins 10,000m gold. BBC Sport (2010-07-27). Retrieved on 2010-07-31.
  27. ^ European Athletics 2010: Farah seals distance double. BBC Sport (2010-07-31). Retrieved on 2010-07-31.
  28. ^ "Diamond League: Mo Farah the first Briton to run sub-13 minutes", Telegraph.co.uk, Friday 20 August 2010
  29. ^ "Farah, Adlington and Williams among Olympic awards". BBC Sport. 2010-12-21. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/olympic_games/9309720.stm. Retrieved 2010-12-21. 
  30. ^ Sampaolo, Diego (2011-01-01). Merga and Cheruiyot take dramatic victories in Bolzano. IAAF. Retrieved on 2011-01-01.
  31. ^ Wenig, Jorg (2011-01-08). Kipchoge and Masai prevail in snowy Edinburgh. IAAF. Retrieved on 2011-01-09.
  32. ^ Kessel, Anna (2011-02-20). "Mo Farah hits the heights as new methods pay off in Birmingham". The Guardian (London). http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/2011/feb/20/mo-farah-athletic-grand-prix. 
  33. ^ "Farah wins New York half-marathon". ESPN.co.uk. http://www.espn.co.uk/athletics/sport/story/80657.html. Retrieved 20 March 2011. 
  34. ^ "Farah smashes European 10,000 m record, Mosop breaks distance world records". http://www.athleticsweekly.com/news/farah-smashes-european-10000m-record-mosop-breaks-distance-world-records/. 
  35. ^ a b http://www.flotrack.org/coverage/238944-Monaco-Diamond-League-Herculis-Meeting-International-dAthletisme-2011/video/501535-Mo-Farah-1st-in-5k-and-new-British-Record-125311-Monaco-Diamond-League-2011.
  36. ^ http://www.morethanthegames.co.uk/athletics/0415407-daegu-2011-farah-storms-famous-5000m-gold-world-championships
  37. ^ http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/sport/olympics/3785603/Mo-Farah-to-blister-through-5000-metres.html
  38. ^ Channel 4 Athletics commentary, Daegu Championships
  39. ^ aliceD (2010-04-04). "Mo Farah's wedding". All-Athletics.com. http://www.all-athletics.com/en-us/2010-04-04/mo-farahs-wedding. Retrieved 2011-08-29. 
  40. ^ Kessel, Anna (2010-07-28). "Mo Farah's ripple effect spreads golden ambitions". The Guardian (London). http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/2010/jul/28/mo-farah-european-championships-gold. 
  41. ^ "TV Online: Mo Farah at Emirates Stadium". Arsenal FC Official website (London). 2010-09-01. http://www.arsenal.com/news/news-archive/tv-online-mo-farah-at-emirates-stadium. 

External links

v · d · eEuropean Athlete of the Year (men)

Linford Christie (1993)  · Colin Jackson (1994)  · Jonathan Edwards (1995)  · Jan Železný (1996)  · Wilson Kipketer (1997)  · Jonathan Edwards (1998)  · Tomáš Dvořák (1999)  · Jan Železný (2000)  · André Bucher (2001)  · Dwain Chambers (2002)  · Christian Olsson (2003)  · Christian Olsson (2004)  · Virgilijus Alekna (2005)  · Francis Obikwelu (2006)  · Tero Pitkämäki (2007)  · Andreas Thorkildsen (2008)  · Phillips Idowu (2009)  · Christophe Lemaitre (2010)  · Mo Farah (2011)
v · d · eWorld Champions in Men's 5000 m

1983: Eamonn Coghlan (IRL)  • 1987: Saïd Aouita (MAR)  • 1991: Yobes Ondieki (KEN)  • 1993: Ismael Kirui (KEN)  • 1995: Ismael Kirui (KEN)  • 1997: Daniel Komen (KEN)  • 1999: Salah Hissou (MAR)  • 2001: Richard Limo (KEN)  • 2003: Eliud Kipchoge (KEN)  • 2005: Benjamin Limo (KEN)  • 2007: Bernard Lagat (USA)  • 2009: Kenenisa Bekele (ETH)  • 2011: Mohammed Farah (GBR)
v · d · eEuropean Champions in Men's 5000 m

1934: Roger Rochard (FRA)  • 1938: Taisto Mäki (FIN)  • 1946: Sydney Wooderson (GBR)  • 1950: Emil Zátopek (TCH)  • 1954: Vladimir Kuts (URS)  • 1958: Zdzisław Krzyszkowiak (POL)  • 1962: Bruce Tulloh (GBR)  • 1966: Michel Jazy (FRA)  • 1969: Ian Stewart (GBR)  • 1971: Juha Väätäinen (FIN)  • 1974: Brendan Foster (GBR)  • 1978: Venanzio Ortis (ITA)  • 1982: Thomas Wessinghage (FRG)  • 1986: Jack Buckner (GBR)  • 1990: Salvatore Antibo (ITA)  • 1994: Dieter Baumann (GER)  • 1998: Isaac Viciosa (ESP)  • 2002: Alberto García (ESP)  • 2006: Jesús España (ESP)  • 2010: Mohammed Farah (GBR)
v · d · eEuropean Champions in Men's 10,000 m

1934: Ilmari Salminen (FIN)  • 1938: Ilmari Salminen (FIN)  • 1946: Viljo Heino (FIN)  • 1950: Emil Zátopek (TCH)  • 1954: Emil Zátopek (TCH)  • 1958: Zdzisław Krzyszkowiak (POL)  • 1962: Pyotr Bolotnikov (URS)  • 1966: Jürgen Haase (GDR)  • 1969: Jürgen Haase (GDR)  • 1971: Juha Väätäinen (FIN)  • 1974: Manfred Kuschmann (GDR)  • 1978: Martti Vainio (FIN)  • 1982: Alberto Cova (ITA)  • 1986: Stefano Mei (ITA)  • 1990: Salvatore Antibo (ITA)  • 1994: Abel Antón (ESP)  • 1998: António Pinto (POR)  • 2002: José Manuel Martínez (ESP)  • 2006: Jan Fitschen (GER)  • 2010: Mohammed Farah (GBR)

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