Farah opens season with convincing win

British track legend claims 10,000m title at Prefontaine Classic

EUGENE: British track star Mo Farah kept his long-distance winning streak alive by capturing the men’s 10,000m race at the 2016 Prefontaine Classic at Hayward Field on Friday night.

The 33-year-old Farah held off Kenya’s William Sitonik with a strong finishing kick on the last lap to win with a world-leading time of 26min 53.71sec.

It was his first race on an outdoor track since competing at the Beijing World Championships nine months ago.



“It is my first track race so it is good to get it out of the way,” said Farah who also swept the 5,000m and 10,000m races at the 2012 London Olympics. “I have some great memories on this track.”

The IAAF Diamond League series hit US soil for the first time this season on a cool night at Hayward Field as a host of international stars are stepping up preparations for this summer’s Rio Olympics.



Farah is considered the world’s leading long-distance runner and has not lost a 10,000m race since his silver medal at the 2011 World Championships.

The Somalian-born Farah has also not lost a 5,000m race since finishing second at the 2012 Prefontaine Diamond League meet.

Friday’s victory makes him the only three-time and back-to-back 10,000m winner in Prefontaine history with other victories coming in 2011 and 2015.

“They have some true fans here,” he said.

Farah is the fastest British runner in history at every championship distance from 1,500m to the marathon.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 29^th, 2016.

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