Mo Farah
Olympic Athlete
Mo Farah is undoubtedly one of the finest distance runners of his generation. A diverse talent, Mo
has won medals in 5000m and cross country, as well as winning numerous titles at 3000m 10
000m. He currently holds 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.
Mo Farah was born in Somalia and arrived in Britain aged eight, speaking hardly any English.
Inspired by his PE teacher, Mo started running at his local athletics club, even though Mo was
much keener on football than athletics!
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.
In 2005, he moved in with a group of Kenyan runners in Teddington, and their fierce training
schedules and dedication inspired him further; in July 2006, Mo 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, he collected the silver medal in the European Championship 5000 m in Gothenburg. He then
capped an outstanding breakthrough year by becoming only the second Brit to win the European
Cross Country title.
Mo’s ability to perform on the international stage was maintained in 2007. In March he finished an
impressive 10th at the IAAF World Cross Country Championships in Mombasa and was sixth in
the 5000m final at the World Championships.
He also started 2008 impressively, recording 27:44.54 – the fastest time by a Briton in almost eight
years – on his 10,000m debut. He spent much of the winter training among the world's top
Africans in Ethiopia and Kenya. In December he showed the early signs of a return to form by
landing the silver medal at the European Cross Country Championships behind multiple champion
Sergiy Lebid.
In January 2009, he 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. In March 2009 he took gold in the 3000 m at the European Indoor Championships in
Turin.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.
He won the 2010 London 10,000m in late May with a British road record time of 27:44, beating
10K world record holder Micah Kogo in the process. His success continued the following week at
the European Cup 10,000 m as he improved his track best by nearly 16 seconds.
In the 2010 European Athletics Championships, he took the 10,000 metres gold medal and then
went on to win the 5000m 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.
In August 2010, at a Diamond League meeting in Zurich, he 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. In December 2010, he was named the track-and-field athlete of the year for
2010 by the British Olympic Association.
2011 started well; at the Edinburgh Cross Country, Mo defeated the top four finishers of that year's
European Championships to take victory in the long race.
In February he announced that he would be relocating to Portland, Oregon, USA, to work with new
coach Alberto Salazar and later that month 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.
In March 2011 he won gold in the 3000 metres at the European Indoor Championships.
An inspiration and tenacious individual, Mo looks to do great things at the London 2012 Olympics.
To book Mo Farah to speak at your event, please contact Parliament on:
+44(0)1202 24 24 24