Briton Mo Farah was given an unwelcome birthday surprise when he was robbed at his hotel in Addis Ababa last month, putting a damper on what he said had been an otherwise perfect preparation for Sunday’s London Marathon.
Farah, third last year and facing a monumental challenge if he is to be able to beat world record holder and defending champion Eliud Kipchoge, said he had completed a really good block of training in Ethiopia except for a small hiccup.
Asked to expand, the multiple Olympic and world champion over 10,000 metres and 5,000m on the track, said: “Someone at the hotel got into my bag, opened my bag, took my money, took my nice watch my wife bought me [as] a present.
“Just to be honest, Haile owns the hotel. When you stay for three months in that hotel, it’s very disappointing to know someone who has that hotel and that kind of hotel couldn’t do nothing. And at the end, they couldn’t do nothing, so I’m just disappointed in Haile.”
“It was on my birthday,” added Farah, who turned 36 on March 23 and won the Chicago Marathon last year.
The London Marathon is scheduled for Sunday April 28, 2019 at 8:05am.
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Fentuo Tahiru/citisportsonline.com/Ghana