Twin Ambitions - My Autobiography

by Mo Farah

  It was my fifth global outdoor title, making me the most decorated athlete in British history. At the end of it all – at the end of a crazy, crazy twelve months – I was overwhelmed with this feeling of indescribable joy. To have gone into a major competition a year after the Olympics and done it all over again, winning gold at both distances, now decisively proved that London wasn’t just a one-off. For my family, for the people who had supported me and stuck by me through the years, good times and bad, to add the World Championship golds to the Olympic medals meant a lot. I could rightfully claim my place on the list of all-time greats. I couldn’t have done it without my family. My friends. My support team. And the public. To have the entire country behind you at home and in the stadium is such a fantastic feeling. In my career, I never thought I would achieve everything that I have. It just goes to show that anything is possible.

  Surprisingly, there were a few critical voices in the media after my double. Some observers claimed that I couldn’t consider myself one of the greatest athletes ever until I had broken world records. Everyone’s entitled to their opinion, but you can’t have it both ways. My target has always been to win as many medals as I can, both on a personal level and for my country. Records are different. They don’t last. They’re there to be broken. Let’s say you train hard and throw all your effort into breaking a world record. What’s going to happen to it? Your record might stand for one year, or maybe even ten, but sooner or later, someone else is going to come along and beat it. Then you’re a footnote. But no one can ever take an Olympic medal or a world title away from you.

  Some people fail to understand that training to win medals involves a different strategy from training to run a faster time. In a championship race you have to combine speed and endurance, you have to work out your tactics and what your rivals are going to do. You have to have every angle covered because you don’t know what others are capable of. When it comes to posting a fast time, though, you can simply say, ‘I’m going to go for it,’ and you don’t have to worry about tactics or rivals or anything else. You can focus purely on teaching your body to run at a particular pace.

  Now the 2013 World Championships are out of the way, there are no major track championships for me until 2015. For the next year I’ll be able to focus on running faster times. Then let’s see how fast I can push it. But if it comes down to a choice, I’ll always choose medals over records. I want titles. I want to be up there on the podium, gold medal hanging around my neck, draped in a Union Jack, the national anthem playing, doing my country proud. As long as I can do that, I’ll be happy.

  Looking ahead, my target is the marathon. The plan with Alberto has always been for me to step up to the 26.2 mile distance in 2014, working my way up by running half-marathons. The type of person I am, I don’t like standing still. I like to try different things. The marathon is something new, and I want to know what it feels like to run it. It’ll be a different type of pain. I’ve tasted the pain of running at 5000 and 10,000 metres on the track – now I want to taste the pain of running a marathon. Running it is all about testing my limits, pushing myself while I still have the chance. The motivation to do that doesn’t come in the form of a cheque. It doesn’t come from your agent or your coach or your sponsors. It comes from you and you alone. I want to be able to do things that I feel good about. All the miles I do, all the training and recovery, pushing my body week in, week out: it all comes down to me. I’m the one who has to make that effort, that sacrifice.

  The London Marathon is the biggest challenge for me in 2014. I’m looking forward to running through the streets of London, soaking up the love of the crowd. Dave Bedford, together with Hugh Brasher, his successor as Race Director, and the rest of the team at London Marathon always put on a great show. Best of all, I know it’s going to be really tough. I won’t be running against a few easy guys. The race is going to be loaded. The pressure is on for me to get my training right. To tell you the truth, I can’t wait.

  And beyond that – who knows? I try not to think that far ahead. Sure, there are things I’m looking forward to when the time comes for me to finally call it a day. I’ll catch up with friends I haven’t seen for too long. I’ll chill out. Maybe do some travelling. I’ve been to loads of countries, but all I’ve seen of most of them is a running track and a hotel. I get on a plane. Fly some place. Get off. Check in at the hotel. Sleep. Rest. Eat. Run. Recover. Back to the hotel. Sleep. Get on another plane. Different countries for me just mean different hotel rooms. They all start to seem kind of the same, apart from the language of the sitcoms on the TV. If you ask me what China is like, I couldn’t tell you. I haven’t seen the Great Wall or the Forbidden City. At least I’ve got my laptop, so I can Skype my family while I’m away from home. Otherwise I’d be lost.

  There’s one other thing I’m looking forward to doing once I retire: playing football. I love the game, yet I haven’t been able to play for years. I wouldn’t change anything for what I’ve achieved as an athlete, but at the same time, I have missed kicking a ball around a pitch, putting tackles in, running down the flanks. When I’m done, I’ll put on a bit of weight and just enjoy life. I like the idea of getting back into Sunday League.

  One thing I won’t do when I retire is run. When that day comes, I’m done. I’ve run so many thousands of miles. That’s it. No more running. Just the football, and maybe the odd bit of boxing. Having said that, retirement is a looooooong way away for me. I try not to think that far ahead. There’s still so much I want to do in my career. There are more championships to compete in, more races to run, more medals to be won for my country. There’s the World Championships in Beijing in 2015; the Olympics in Rio de Janeiro in 2016; the marathon. I just want to keep pushing it and do well because, as an athlete, you know this moment isn’t going to last for ever.

  My faith helps to keep me grounded. Take Ramadan, for example. I’m not about to adopt the attitude of, ‘I’m an Olympic champion, I’m not doing that now.’ I have never looked at myself as better than other people. I expect to be judged just the same as anyone else. Islam teaches you to be thankful for the things you have, to be charitable and kind, not to be resentful over the things you don’t have. Whether something good or bad happens, you still thank Allah for everything he has given you. At the same time, I would never wish to impose my religion on someone else. In my view, religion is a private, personal thing. What you believe is what you believe. It’s not for me to decide what someone else should believe in and, as much as possible, I keep my beliefs to myself. I hate the idea of imposing my views on someone else. It’s important to respect everyone’s beliefs, even if you don’t agree with them.

  A lot of it comes down to education. At school I was in a minority and marked out for treatment by some of the other kids. Because I was known as the athlete, I escaped the worst of it. I imagine it was worse for some of the other kids. Thankfully, things have improved dramatically since those days, although it’d be a lie to say that racism has completely disappeared. I’m regularly stopped and interrogated by customs in the US, and as a general rule of thumb, I need two hours when catching a flight connection because that’s how long it takes me to get through immigration. As soon as the name ‘Farah’ flashes up on the screen, everyone’s on alert. Tania gets stopped even when she’s travelling without me, purely because she now has a Somali-sounding surname.

  Changing perceptions takes time. Parents can do their bit by encouraging their kids to make friends with people from other cultures and backgrounds. That way they’re less likely to be prejudiced. For me, speaking as a kid who moved from one culture to another, when I’m walking down the street, I don’t see myself as black, I’m just Mo. I don’t judge people by the colour of their skin. I just see people. At the end of the day, everyone bleeds the same.

  I’m trying to do my bit to change perceptions. In the past few years there’s been a lot of negative coverage of Somalia and Somali people: the gangs, the civil war. That’s started to chan
ge thanks to the success stories of people from Somali backgrounds, such as the writer and journalist Rageh Omaar and the singer K’Naan. I’d like to think that my achievements have played a part too. The country has a transitional government now and is starting to rebuild, but that will take time. In early 2013 the new Somali president, Hassan Sheikh Mohamoud, called me to ask me to move back there as part of a drive to get Somali people living elsewhere to return home and help rebuild the country after decades of war and devastation. For now, my life is in Britain and the US. My family is here. My friends, my career. And whenever I run, I’m doing both Britain and Somalia proud. Even though I represent another country, Somali people still take great joy in seeing me win. The country has never had someone achieve what I’ve achieved in my lifetime. I hope that, in my own small way, I can help create a more positive image of the country of my birth.

  One of the reasons that I decided to write this book was so that I could open people’s eyes and make them see that if you set your mind to a task and graft at it really, really hard, then you can go a long way. When I was new to Britain I was distracted; I didn’t know how things worked and I got into trouble. I did things that, looking back now, I can say, ‘I shouldn’t have done this or that.’ But at the time, you’re just a kid. You don’t know any better. I had to make those mistakes and learn from them because no one else was going to teach me.

  Most importantly, I have my three girls. I have my wife. I have my family. That matters even more to me than being double Olympic champion or double World Champion. When this is all over, when the races are done, I’m looking forward to spending more time with my family. I have this dream that when I stop running, Hassan will be there. His family living next to my family. His kids playing with my kids. Tania and Hoda joking around. My mum will be there too. Me and Hassan causing trouble. All of us together.

  I’m looking forward to that day already.

  CAREER STATISTICS

  Prepared by Peter Matthews

  Mohamed Farah

  Born: 23 March 1983, Somalia

  Height: 175 cm

  Weight: 65 kg

  Club: Nike Oregon Project

  UK Clubs: Borough of Hounslow 1995–2000; Windsor, Slough, Eton & Hounslow 2001–4; Newham & Essex Beagles 2005–

  Coach: Alberto Salazar

  Management: PACE Sports Management

  Key to abbreviations:

  + = intermediate time in longer race

  A = Altitude over 1000 metres

  AAA = Amateur Athletics Association

  AUS = Australia

  BEL = Belgium

  BL(P) = British Athletics League (Premiership)

  BMC = British Milers Club

  CAU = Counties Athletic Union

  CC = Cross country

  CHN = China

  CP = Crystal Palace

  CRO = Croatia

  CZE = Czech Republic

  dnf = did not finish

  er = en route

  ESP = Spain

  ETH = Ethiopia

  FIN = Finland

  FP = Finsbury Park

  FRA = France

  GER = Germany

  h = heat

  Ha = Haringey

  He = Hendon

  i = indoors

  IAAF = International Association of Athletics Federations

  Int = Intermediates

  IRL = Ireland

  ITA = Italy

  J = Juniors or Junior race

  JPN = Japan

  KEN = Kenya

  KOR = Korea

  m = metres

  MON = Monaco

  N&EB = Newham & Essex Beagles

  NED = Netherlands

  NJL = National Junior League

  NOR = Norway

  NZL = New Zealand

  OS = Olympic Stadium

  PH = Parliament Hill

  POL = Poland

  POR = Portugal

  Rd = Road

  RR = Road Relay

  SLO = Slovakia

  SP = Southwark Park

  St = Steeplechase

  SUI = Switzerland

  SWE = Sweden

  TUR = Turkey

  U = Under

  WL = West London

  WSEH = Windsor Slough Eton & Hounslow Athletics Club

  YAL = Young Athletes League

  Personal Bests

  Road race bests

  Annual Progression

  Major International Championship results

  National titles won

  AAA: U15 3000m 1997; U17 3000m 1999; U23 5000m 2003; Indoor 3000m 2003 & 2005

  UK: 5000m 2007 & 2011; Indoor 3000m 2007; 1500m 2009; 10k Rd 2011; Junior CC 2001

  National Cross Country: U17 1999 & 2000; U20 2003

  English Schools: Junior 1500m & CC 1997; Intermediate 3000m 1998; CC & 1500m 1999

  UK Records – Outdoors

  (Text in bold indicates this is also a European record.)

  UK Records – Indoors

  British Top Ten Annual Merit Rankings

  World Merit Rankings

  5000m: 1st 2011, 2012 and 2013

  10,000m: 2nd 2011, 2012 and 2013

  Year-by-year Race Record

  INDEX

  A

  Abdalla, Ali

  Adams, Tony

  Addis Ababa

  Aden, Jama

  adidas

  Adlington, Rebecca

  Adnan

  Akkas, Halil

  Alamirew, Yenew

  Albuquerque

  Ali, Abdi

  Almelo

  Amina, Grandma (MF’s grandma)

  MF and siblings move in with

  moves to the Netherlands

  Anniversary Games (2013)

  Antibo, Salvatore

  aqua-jogging

  Arsenal

  MF is invited to watch Arsenal play

  sends messages of support to MF

  Adnan

  Aviva International Match

  2009 event

  2012 event

  B

  Balding, Clare

  Banks, Tony

  Barcelona, European Championships (2010)

  Barre, Siad

  Barsosio, Sally

  Beaverton

  Bedfont Town

  Bedford, Dave

  distance running

  MF considers marathon running

  at London Marathon

  Bedford, Tom

  friendship with MF

  Potchefstroom training camp

  jumps off Kingston Bridge

  Beijing

  Olympic Games (2008)

  World Championships (2015)

  Bekele, Kenenisa

  Beijing Olympics (2008)

  Berlin World Championships (2009)

  world record holder

  Daegu World Championships (2011)

  Prefontaine Classic Diamond League (2012)

  London Olympics (2012)

  winning the ‘double-double’

  Bekele, Tariku

  Osaka World Championships (2007)

  Beijing Olympics (2008)

  Diamond League (2010)

  London Olympics (2012)

  Belgium

  World Cross Country Championships (2001)

  KBC Nacht of Athletics (2006)

  Belgrave Harriers

  Benjamin, Tim

  Bergkamp, Dennis

  Berlin, World Championships (2009)

  Bett, Mark

  Bezabeh, Alemayehu

  Barcelona European Championships (2010)

  Bideau, Nic

  Bile, Abdi

  Birchfield Harriers

  Birgen, Bethwell

  Birmingham, Collis

  Birmingham Grand Prix (2012)

  Birmingham

  Birmingham indoor race (2012)

  Diamond League (2012)

  British Grand Prix (2013)

  Black, Neil ‘Blackie’

  MF’s knee problems

  MF’s Achilles tendonitis
>
  London Olympics (2012)

  BoClassic International (2010)

  Bolt, Usain

  Bolzano, BoClassic International (2010)

  Bono

  Bordukov, Eduard

  Borough of Hounslow Athletics Club

  MF at

  merges with Windsor Slough & Eton

  Boston

  Boston Marathon (2001)

  Boston one-mile race (2012)

  Boyle, Danny

  Brasher, Hugh

  British Grand Prix

  2012 event

  2013 event

  British Milers Club

  British Olympic Futures camp, Florida

  British World Cross Country Trial (2010)

  Brown, Taras

  Brunel University

  Brussels, European Cross Country Championships (2008)

  Bupa 10 kilometre road race

  2012 race

  2013 race

  Bushy Park

  Bydgoszcz, European Junior Championships (2003)

  C

  Cameron, David

  Canova, Renato

  Carvalho, Florian

  Chatsworth Primary School

  Chepkok, Vincent, Diamond League (2010)

  Cheruiyot, Vivian

  Chile, World Junior Athletics Championships (2000)

  Chin, Darren

  Choge, Augustine

  Melbourne Commonwealth Games (2006)

  Aviva International Match (2012)

  Istanbul World Indoor Championships (2012)

  Chojecka, Lidia

  Clarke, Tom

  Coe, Seb

  Cole, Carlton

  Commonwealth Games (2006)

  Corden, James

  county championships

  Cram, Steve

  Cross Country Championships, English Schools

  1996 event

  1997 event

  The Cube

  Curbishley, Allison

  D

  Daegu, World Championships (2011)

  Daegu Stadium, Daegu

  Daily Mail

  Daley, Tom

  Dan Valley Stadium, Sheffield