Earlier in the week we commenced our series on the Top 10 World Athletes in 2015 presenting Nos. 10 to 6 in Part 1. Sit tight as we take things a notch higher in this concluding part highlighting the best of the best. This one promises to be more interesting…. here we go!!!
5. MO FARAH
He is the most decorated person in British athletics history and it’s no wonder why. The Somali-born British athlete has held fort in the long distances in recent years, almost filling the void that was created by the retirement of Ethiopian great, Haile Gebrselassie and absence of World/Olympic Record holder in the 5000m/10000m, Kenenisa Bekele.
Farah kicked off the 2015 season by setting a World Record (WR) in the Indoor two-mile at the Birmingham Indoor Grand Prix, erasing Bekele’s former record. He went on to break the European Record in the Half Marathon the following month. He thereafter competed in a number of Diamond League meetings where he secured victories in London (3000m) and Lausanne (5000m), while finishing 4th behind Asbel Kiprop in the 1500m in Monaco.
Following the controversy that was generated from his coach being at the center of reports alleging misuse of prescription medicine, the world waited with bated breath to see if Farah would be able to successfully pull off victories in the 5000m/10000m as he had done in Moscow two years earlier. He certainly had a point to prove!
However, he pushed all of that aside to win the 10000m on Day 1 of the championships, making him the oldest ever global winner at the event at age 32. He accomplished same in the 5000m seven days later, overtaking Commonwealth champion, Caleb Ndiku in the final moments of the race to take GOLD, thus completing a historic ‘triple-double’ of global titles (London 2012, Moscow 2013 and Beijing 2015).
This was Farah’s fifth ‘double’ of his career, having struck GOLD in both races at the 2010 and 2014 European Championships. The Briton’s tally of seven global outdoor titles is already one above Gebrselassie’s, and one less than Bekele’s. Securing another double in Rio will see Farah go past the Ethiopian legend.
