London Marathon 2019: Mo Farah happy as underdog in bid to break Eliud Kipchoge’s iron grip

As world record-holder, Eliud Kipchoge, was already the overwhelming favourite to win Sunday’s London Marathon. And the Kenyan could be forgiven for thinking the home threat of Mo Farah may have been diminished following his very public falling-out with his former friend, Haile Gebrselassie.

But the Briton has proved in the past he is able to rise from off-track adversity, such as with the doping investigation into his former coach Alberto Salazar, to shine on the biggest stage.

Farah's coach Gary Lough flew into London last night and today will start to go through his race pace with him and assess whether it is realistic to follow the 61min 20sec half-marathon target asked of the pacemakers for Kipchoge and the leading group.

Lough has already argued the verbal sparring with Gebrselassie over claims by Farah that he had a Tag watch, £2,600 in cash and two mobile phones stolen from his room at the hotel Gebrselassie owns may actually work in his favour.

So, the big question — with those potential demons apparently erased — is whether Farah can unseat arguably the greatest marathon runner of all time. Their best times are three-and-a-half minutes apart — the equivalent of a massive eight seconds per mile — and Farah likened his challenge to a heavyweight boxing title fight in which he is a notable underdog.

“Anything’s possible,” he told Standard Sport. “It’s like the first Tyson-Holyfield fight, when Tyson was the big favourite and lost. If you can’t win in your home town, what are you here for? I’m happy, I’ve done everything I need to do. I’m good to go.”

Warming to the analogy, he then ventured lightheartedly: “I’m ready to take his ear off!”

Farah is not used to playing second fiddle, or third as he was last year in London in finishing over two minutes behind Kipchoge. Yet, his confidence was boosted by that podium finish, which was far more impressive than a previous foray on the capital’s streets in 2014, despite struggling with the water stations on the route. And his expectations a year on have been raised after winning his only other marathon, Chicago, in October.

The 36-year-old is driven in this second chapter of his career to oust Kipchoge and any failure to do so is something that would act as a retirement millstone, despite the multitude of Olympic and global titles he has won on the track. “I don’t think I’ll ever forgive myself if I don’t beat Eliud at some point in my career,” added Farah. “I would hate him to retire and me to know that I’d never beaten him. That, for me, is the biggest motivator.”

The majority of Farah’s pre-race fighting talk has involved the claims and counter-claims with Gebrselassie but, for all the acrimony in the sideshow, Farah’s entourage have talked about “a different” Farah for this year’s race. “I think anybody that doesn’t take him as a very serious threat will get a surprise,” said Lough.

Celebrity London Marathon Runners 2019 - In pictures

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That is not something Kipchoge’s coach, Patrick Sang, expects his star athlete to be guilty of. “Mo is a great athlete," said Sang. “We give him credit for what he’s done in the sport. He has done great things on the track and he’s shown he has a lot of potential in the new chapter of marathon running. Having Mo in the mix gives a lot of inspiration to many people from the continent of Europe. The best athlete will win on the day. I cross my fingers that it’s my athlete and not Mo.”

For Farah, it would be fitting to win a race where he began his running career in the mini-marathon. It is an event at which he says he might choose to retire, although not as early as this year. With Kipchoge expected to be up the road from him come the business end of this race, that is still the carrot being dangled in front of Farah in London and beyond. “I need to use the crowd and make the most of it,” said Farah. “I love that drive, I love competing and that feeling of winning. It’s what I’m searching for on Sunday.”

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