Background and career
Sir Mohamed "Mo" Muktar Jama Farah (born Hussein Abdi Kahin, 23 March 1983) is a British former long-distance runner. He holds the record for the most global championship gold medals (four Olympic and six World titles), making him the most successful male track distance runner in the history of the sport, and he is the most successful British track athlete in Olympic Games history. Farah is the 2012 and 2016 Olympic gold medallist in both the 5,000 m and 10,000 m. He is the second athlete, after Lasse Virén, to win both the 5,000 m and 10,000 m titles at successive Olympic Games. He also completed the 'distance double' at the 2013 and 2015 World Championships in Athletics. He was the first man to defend both distance titles in both major global competitions; a feat described as the 'quadruple-double'. After finishing second in the 10,000 metres at the 2011 World Championships, Farah had an unbroken streak of ten global final wins (the 5,000 m in 2011, the double in 2012, 2013, 2015 and 2016, and the 10,000 m in 2017). The streak ended in Farah's final championship track race, when he finished second to Ethiopia's Muktar Edris in the 2017 5,000 metres final. On the track, Farah mostly competed over 5,000 metres and 10,000 metres, but has run competitively from 1,500 metres to the marathon. In 2017, he indicated his intention to switch wholly to road racing following victory at his final track race, the 2017 IAAF Diamond League 5,000-meter final. He won the 2018 Chicago Marathon in a time of 2:05:11, a European record. His running style has been described as bouncy and tactical, which he has attempted to alter for a more efficient and energy-saving stride pattern, especially in the longer distances. Farah runs distance races tactically, a style which is aided by his especially quick sprint finish. His tactics were described in Athletics Weekly: "(Farah) could run 24 strong laps of the track, which most of his East African rivals could match, before a blistering 400 metre sprint to the line, which none of them could." Born Hussein Abdi Kahin in the Somali Democratic Republic, he was trafficked from Djibouti to London under the name of another child, Mohamed Farah, at the age of nine and was forced into child labour. He adopted the name as his own thereafter and became a British citizen. He ran for the Newham and Essex Beagles athletics club, training at St Mary's University College, Twickenham from 2001 to 2011. He did not reveal that he was a victim of trafficking until 2022. Farah is the current world record holder for the one-hour run (21,330 m) and the current European record holder for the outdoor 10,000 m (26:46.57). He is also the current British record holder for the 3,000 m (7:32.62) and 5,000 m (12:53.11). He formerly held the world best for the short track two miles at 8:03.40 (broken by Josh Kerr in 2024 with an 8:00.67 clocking), and also formerly held the European best in the outdoor two mile (8:07.85) and 3000 m (7:32.62), until Jakob Ingebrigtsen broke the 2 mile in 2023 with a new world best of 7:54.10 and the 3,000 m in 2024 with a world record time of 7:17.55. Farah was also the former British short track record holder for the 3,000 m, at 7:33.1+ (broken by Sam Atkin in 2023 with 7:31.97). Farah also held the 1500 m British Record (3:28.81), which was broken by Josh Kerr in 2024 with a time of 3:27.79. Farah was the first British athlete to win two gold medals at the same world championships. His five gold medals at the European Athletics Championships made him the most successful male athlete in the championships' history in individual events. He has won the European Athlete of the Year award and the British Athletics Writers Association British Athlete of the Year award more than any other athlete, three times and six times respectively. In 2017, Farah won the BBC Sports Personality of the Year. Farah was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in 2013 and was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II in the 2017 New Year Honours for services to athletics.
Hussein Abdi Kahin (Somali: Xuseen Cabdi Kaahin) was born on 23 March 1983 in the Somali Democratic Republic. He belongs to the Jibril Abokor sub-division of the Habr Awal clan, itself part of the Isaaq clan-family. His father died in the Somali Rebellion when Kahin was aged four, and he then became separated from his mother. He subsequently spent a few years in Mogadishu before, at the age of nine, he was illegally trafficked to the United Kingdom via Djibouti, where he was given the name Mohammed Farah and was forced to work as a domestic servant. Farah was flown from Somalia by a woman he had never met and was made to look after her family's children, as "it was common in their culture". He obtained British citizenship in July 2000 under the name Mohamed Farah. These aspects of his background were not made public until July 2022, and a barrister told him that there was a risk that he might lose his British nationality as it was obtained by misrepresentations; the Home Office, however, assured him that he would not face any repercussions. For the first years he was in Britain, he was not allowed to go to school, but when he was 11 or 12, he began to attend Year 7 at Feltham Community College, where staff were told he was a refugee from Somalia. His athletic talent was first identified by physical education teacher Alan Watkinson. Farah's ambition at the time was to play as a right winger for Arsenal football club, or become a car mechanic. Farah was a student at Isleworth and Syon school. In 2022, he gave an interview to current students.
Farah joined the Borough of Hounslow Athletics Club in west London. He represented Hounslow at cross-country in the 1994 London Youth Games as an under-13. In 1996, at the age of 13, he entered the English schools cross-country championships and finished ninth. The following year he won the first of five English school titles. Recognising his talent, athletics philanthropist Eddie Kulukundis paid the legal fees to complete Farah's naturalisation as a British citizen, allowing him to travel to competitions without visa issues. Farah's first major title was in the 5000 metres at the 2001 European Athletics Junior Championships, the same year that he began training at St Mary's University, Twickenham. That year, Farah became one of the first two athletes in the newly formed Endurance Performance Centre at St Mary's. He lived and trained at the college and took some modules in an access course before becoming a full-time athlete as his career progressed.
In 2005, Farah moved in with Australian Craig Mottram and a group of Kenyan runners that included 10,000 m world number one Micah Kogo. "They sleep, eat, train and rest, that's all they do but as an athlete you have to do all those things. Running with Craig made me feel more positive," Farah said. "If I ever want to be as good as these athletes I've got to work harder. I don't just want to be British number one, I want to be up there with the best." In July 2006, Farah recorded a time of 13 minutes 9.40 seconds for 5000 m to become Britain's second-fastest runner after Dave Moorcroft. A month later, Farah won the silver medal in the 5000 m at the European Championships in Gothenburg. Coaches Alan Storey and Mark Rowland made sure that Farah remained competitive and a few words from Paula Radcliffe before the 5000 m final inspired Farah. He has stated that: "She said to me, 'Go out and be brave. Just believe in yourself'." In December 2006, Farah won the 2006 European Cross Country Championships in San Giorgio su Legnano, Italy. During the 2007 European Indoor Championship Farah fell and amid confusion started running in the wrong direction. Farah represented the UK at 5000 m in the 2007 World Championships in Osaka, Japan. Farah finished sixth in a time of 13:47.54.
In May 2008, Farah ran 10,000 m, setting the fastest UK men's time for almost 8 years. However, he was knocked out before the 5000 m final at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing.
In January 2009, Farah set a new British indoor record in the 3000 metres, breaking John Mayock's record with a time of 7 minutes 40.99 seconds in Glasgow. A few weeks later, he broke his own record by more than six seconds with a time of 7 minutes 34.47 at the UK Indoor Grand Prix in Birmingham, a performance which commentator Steve Cram called "the best performance by a male British distance runner for a generation". Farah attributed his good form to a spell of winter training at altitude in Ethiopia and Kenya. In March 2009 he took gold in the 3000 m at the European Indoor Championships in Turin, recording a time of 7 minutes 40.17. Farah competed at the 2009 World Championships in Athletics: he was in the leading pack early on in the 5000 metres race and eventually finished seventh – the best by a European runner. After the championships, he scored a victory in his first road competition over 10 miles, winning the Great South Run in 46:25 to become the third fastest Briton in spite of strong winds. Farah was one of the favourites to upset Serhiy Lebid's dominance at the 2009 European Cross Country Championships. However, Lebid was never in contention as Farah and Alemayehu Bezabeh were some distance ahead throughout the run. Farah was overtaken by Bezabeh in the latter stages of the race, leaving the Briton with a second consecutive silver medal at the competition. He did not manage to attend the medal ceremony, however, as he collapsed immediately after the race and needed medical attention. After a close third place behind Edwin Soi at the BOclassic, Farah competed in the short course race at the Great Edinburgh Cross Country. He was the favourite to win and surged ahead to build a comfortable lead. However, he appeared tired in the latter stages and finished third behind British runners Ricky Stevenson and Steve Vernon. Farah again required post-race medical attention, and subsequent tests revealed he had low levels of iron and magnesium. He was prescribed supplements for the condition, and his high-altitude training plans in Kenya were unaffected.
Sources
Net-worth figure: Celebrity Net Worth (October 2026), in USD. Biography and career facts: the person's Wikipedia article and linked reporting. Snapshot date for all StarWorth figures: 28 October 2026.
