Sir Mo Farah Targets Six Of The Best
SIR MO FARAH will bid to become the first athlete to win six consecutive Simplyhealth Great North Runs when he returns to the iconic half marathon on Sunday 8 September.
Sir Mo has a winning streak dating back to 2014 on the famous 13.1 mile race between Newcastle and South Shields, and victory this time around will see the Great Britain distance running great make history all over again.
Only Sir Mo and Dame Tanni Grey-Thompson have won five consecutive Great North Runs in the event’s 39-year history, with Dame Tanni’s last victory in the wheelchair event 20 years ago. Sir Mo was in imperious form in the North-East last year, clocking a blistering 59.26.
Sir Mo, the ten-time Olympic and World champion, will once again use Simplyhealth Great North Run as part of his preparations for the Chicago Marathon – the 36-year-old will defend his title having taken victory in the 26.2mile race where he also smashed the British marathon record with a time of 2.05.11.
He said: “I’m going to be giving it my best shot. Winning it once was special enough, to win it for the sixth time would be unbelievable.
“It was a massive part of my preparations for Chicago last year and it will be as important this year.
“The Simplyhealth Great North Run is one of my favourite races, it’s something that I always look forward to and I can’t wait to be back on that start line in Newcastle in September.”
While Sir Mo will be expected to compete at the front of the pack, he will also have a vested interest in events going on behind him as his wife Tania will be taking on her third Simplyhealth Great North Run alongside 57,000 runners.
Lady Tania achieved a personal best in 2018 and, under her husband’s training, will be aiming to go one better as she takes on the world’s biggest half marathon again in 2019.
The full elite field for the 39th staging of Simplyhealth Great North Run will be announced in due course. For more information on the event, visit greatrun.org/North
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