Mo Farah

Mo Farah

Medal record
Representing Great Britain
European Championships
	2006 Göteborg	5000 m
European Indoor Championships
	2009 Torino	3000 m
European Cross Country Championships
	2006 San Giorgio su Legnano	Cross Country

Mohammed "Mo" Farah (Template:Lang-ar; Somali: Maxamed Faarax; born 23 March, 1983 in Mogadishu, Somalia) is a British international track and field athlete. He currently holds the British indoor record in the 3000 metres.

Based in London and running for Newham and Essex Beagles athletics club, Farah won his first major title at the European Junior Championships in 2001. On the track, he competes over 5000 metres, where he came sixth in the 2007 World Athletics Championships; but also over 3000 metres and occasionally 1500 metres. He also competes in cross-country running, where in December 2006 he became European champion in Italy. In 2009 he won gold in the in the 3000m at the European Indoor Championships in Turin.

Biography

Junior career

Farah arrived in Britain in 1993 from Mogadishu as a refugee, speaking barely a word of English. Farah's athletic talent was identified by physical education teacher Alan Watkinson at Isleworth and Syon School. Farah has said of Watkinson: "Alan was a big part of my career". Farah continued his studies and was successful in physical education at Feltham Community College, a school located in Hounslow, London.

Watkinson offered 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.

His first major title was at 5000 metres at the European Athletics Junior Championship in 2001..

Senior career

In 2005, Farah made a important move, moving in with Australian Craig Mottram and a group of Kenyan runners that included 10000 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."

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'."

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

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.

In May 2008 Farah ran 10000 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.

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. 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, a performance which commentator Steve Cram called "the best performance by a male British distance runner for a generation". Farah attributed his good form to a spell of winter training at altitude in Ethiopia and Kenya. 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.

Achievements

• 2005 European Indoor Athletics Championships
  • 3000 m Sixth place
• 2006 European Cross Country Championships
  • Gold Medal
• 2006 European Championships in Athletics
  • 5000 m Silver medal
• 2006 Commonwealth Games
  • 5000 m Ninth place
• 2007 World Championships in Athletics
  • 5000 m Sixth place
• 2009 European Indoor Championships in Athletics
  • 3000 m Gold medal

Personal bests

Surface	Event	Time	Date	Place
Outdoor Track	800 m	1:48.69	3 August 2003	Eton
	1500 m	3:38.02	27 August 2006	Rieti
	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	13:07.00	14 September 2007	Brussels
	10000 m	27:44.54	4 May 2008	Palo Alto
Indoor Track	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

External links

• Mohammed Farah at World Athletics
• Guardian article by Steve Cram
• Mo Farah's Rising Star profile on spikesmag.com