Farah opens outdoor season with a bang at Diamond League

Farah shook off a valiant challenge by Kenyan William Sitonik to win his first outdoor race of the year and kept alive a five-year winning streak at the distance as he clocked an Olympic-qualifying time of 26 minutes, 53.71 seconds. “I don’t want to lose here,” said the Briton, who trains in nearby Portland, Oregon. 

Sitonik finished second in a lifetime best 26:54.66 with Ethiopian Tamari Toga third in 26:57.33 as five runners broke 27 minutes. Though Farah claimed victory on a crisp, cool evening, the 33-year-old Olympic favourite was not overly delighted with his performance. “It was good to run sub-27 (minutes),” he said. “But honestly, I was kind of disappointed. I was hoping to run a lot faster than that. 

“Sometimes, you know, it’s your first race and then I have to make the decision to continue pushing... or try and win the race,” he added. 

He also was a little disappointed that the race had not attracted a stronger field in which to open his outdoor season.