Sir Mo Farah, Britain’s most-successful track and field Olympian, says he expects his final race this weekend will be an emotional affair.
The four-time gold medallist will end his illustrious career at the Great North Run in Tyneside.
“It’s going to be hard on Sunday,” the athlete said.
“I think towards the end it’s going to be very emotional; it always is in South Shields. It’s always packed the last couple of miles, but I think whatever happens whether I’m leading or winning, it will be very emotional.
“I’ll wave to the people and thank you to everyone who has been part of my journey.”
Sir Mo first entered the Great North Run in 2013, going on to win the event, which is the world’s largest half-marathon, on six different occasions.
Posing for his last-ever pre-race photocall before speaking to journalists, Sir Mo reflected on some of his other career highlights, including his two gold medals at the London Olympics in front of a home crowd.
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On a day dubbed “Super Saturday”, Farah won the 10,000 metres on the same night fellow Team GB athletes Jessica Ennis-Hill (heptathlon) and Greg Rutherford (long jump) also struck gold.
“You’re doing it right in front of your hometown, and the stadium is going crazy, as it is 75,000 people shouting out your name,” he recalled.
“I got to the front, the people are shouting your name and when I’d got to the back it’d be a little quieter. Honestly that’s what keeps me getting out of bed year after year, it’s that moment.”
Before his historic success, however, was a difficult childhood, in which he was trafficked to the UK from what is now modern-day Somalia, before being given Mohammed Farah as a false name.
His early childhood saw him forced to work in domestic servitude, living with a family he didn’t know.
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Sir Mo decided to speak out about his past last year because of his family.
“Really it was my family who did it for me,” he said, “because my kids were asking me questions every day. I owed it to them and owed it to myself to be honest with them”.
“I don’t think any child should go through what I did. Child trafficking is a huge problem and for me, it was more of a self-release, even though I’m this man I am, a guy who wins everything, I was struggling mentally.”
Sir Mo is now looking forward to spending more time with his wife Tania and their four children, while also thinking about another one of his life-long passions, Arsenal Football Club, who he revealed he’d like to work for in some capacity.
“I would love to, if there’s ever a role, the right role. Football was a dream as a young kid and I had a dream of becoming a football player, but it’s a good thing I didn’t because one thing has worked out well,” he said.
