Oh Mo! Farah gets golden send-off from press

London, United Kingdom | AFP | British athletics legend Mo Farah was hailed by the British press on Sunday despite his glorious track career ending with defeat in the 5,000 metres world championships final.

Although his silver medal performance was pushed out of the limelight by the drama of the men’s 4x100m relay, which saw fellow legend Usain Bolt collapse with cramp on his own swansong as Britain pulled off a remarkable victory, as well as the thrilling opening of the Premier League season, Farah still commanded many column inches.

The 34-year-old saw his global championship win streak of 10 gold medals dating back to the 5,000m at the 2011 world championships ended as Muktar Edris of Ethiopia held off his desperate charge in the finishing straight.

“End of the track for Mo” headlined The Sunday Times, adding that it was a “shattering defeat in front of an adoring crowd”.

However, the paper eulogised about the performance by Farah — who came to Britain with his mother and two of his brothers from Somalia via a spell with his grandparents in Djibouti aged just eight — in the stadium where he had memorably achieved his first Olympic double in 2012.

“If defeat is the making of a true champion, then Mo Farah left the track at the Olympic stadium last night as the greatest champion of all,” wrote its sports writer.

“What you have done for this nation is unbelievable”. @Iwanrunner speaks to an emotional #mofarah after the ??’s ? #BeTheNext great pic.twitter.com/7GVX71rdl8

— IAAF World Champs (@IAAFWorldChamps) August 12, 2017

“That he failed, beaten finally, for the first time at a major championships since 2011, by Muktar Edris of Ethiopia, stripped nothing from the legend.”

The Sun on Sunday, never one to miss out on an eye-catching pun, perhaps unkindly went with “Slow Mo”.

However, Farah — who has had a tense relationship with large sections of the British media over the questions raised by his loyalty to controversial United States-based coach Alberto Salazar — would have been happier with what followed.

“The 34-year-old is hanging up his spikes to take to the roads in the marathon after a stellar career which has seen him establish himself as one of the all-time greats of the sport,” purred the Sun correspondent.

“Yet despite the huge support from the home crowd packed into the London Stadium, Britain’s hero was finally knocked off his perch as the king of long-distance running.”