Farah to race at Olympic anniversary meeting
MO FARAH has confirmed he will return to the former Olympic Stadium in London to take part in the Sainsbury’s Anniversary Games next month.
It will be Farah’s first competitive appearance in Britain since the BBC broadcast doping allegations against his coach Alberto Salazar and team-mate Galen Rupp.
Salazar and Rupp both strenuously deny the allegations made against them and there is no suggestion that Farah has done anything wrong.
Farah, who withdrew from a scheduled appearance at the Diamond League meeting in Birmingham last month shortly after the allegations were broadcast, will compete in the 3,000 metres in London.
The race will form part of his preparations for the World Championships in Beijing next month, in which he is aiming to defend his 5,000m and 10,000m titles.
Farah said: “The race will be exciting on the Friday night [24 July] at the Olympic Stadium. My training is going well and it is just what I need to prepare more for the World Championships.
“This year’s World Championships are hugely important to me and the 3,000m at the Sainsbury’s Anniversary Games will be the best possible preparation.
“I can’t wait to run in front of a home crowd again and thank the British public for all their support. I hope that the fans will come out and cheer me on at the Olympic Stadium.
“I can’t wait to round off my World Championships build-up with a successful run in front of the best spectators in the world. The Olympic Stadium feels like home to me. ‘Super Saturday’ at the London 2012 Olympic Games when Jess Ennis-hill, Greg Rutherford and I all won gold medals for our country was the finest hour for athletics in Britain.”
Farah, who will return to the track in Lausanne tomorrow, said in a recent interview the allegations were “killing me [and] killing my family”. He has vowed to co-operate with imminent inquiries by the US and UK anti-doping agencies, and indicated he will end his relationship with Salazar if any of the allegations are subsequently proven.