Mo Farah says goodbye with final race at the Great North Run, with the 40-year-old Olympic icon insisting he won’t even go JOGGING after this weekend’s retirement!
Mo Farah bids farewell with the final race of the Great North Run, with the 40-year-old Olympic icon insisting he won’t even be jogging after his retirement this weekend!
- Mo Farah closes the curtain on his career this weekend with the last race
- The 40-year-old is retiring after taking part in the Great North Run on Sunday
- Farah says he could go into coaching now that his illustrious running career is over
Mo Farah expects to be ‘very emotional’ when he races for the final time at the Great North Run on Sunday, but says he won’t even jog again once he retires.
The 40-year-old is bringing the curtain down on his illustrious career in the iconic half marathon, which has seen him win a record six times.
But while Farah admits he will miss the sport that has won him four Olympic gold medals, he insists that after this weekend he will probably be playing football rather than doing a 5km parkrun.
“I will be very emotional because running is the only thing I know,” said the British distance legend. ‘I got so much joy out of it, so many memorable moments. Running was an escape from life for me and I will certainly miss it.
‘I’ll stay active, but you won’t see me jogging for the sake of jogging. I don’t see myself running. I go to the gym, play football, play golf. I’m going to take a break now and look for something that can motivate me.’
Mo Farah will race for the final time at the Great North Run this weekend as he retires from running
The 40-year-old was able to enter the coaching profession after he hooked his running trainers this weekend
Farah admits he is ‘worried’ about how he will fill his time after running, but hopes he can one day become a coach.
“I have to do something, but it’s discovering that,” he said.
‘I would like to coach, give something back to others and stay involved in the sport itself.
‘I don’t know when that moment will be. But I have my trainer’s license and it’s something I’ve always thought about.’
In his final race, Farah is expected to challenge for the places behind London Marathon runner-up Geoffrey Kamworo and two-time 5,000m world champion Muktar Edris, whose son Mo is named after the Briton.
Farah became a sporting icon after his performances at the 2012 London Olympics
Scotland’s Andrew Butchart, who finished one place above Farah in third place in the Big Half in London last week, was also added to the field on Friday.
“I’m happy with my training and in a good place,” added Farah, who has been training at altitude in Font Romeu, France.
‘It would be good to get under 61 minutes and 30 seconds. But what matters is that you take it all in and enjoy it.
“I’m so happy to have the opportunity to celebrate the end of my professional career on that famous finish line.”