UKA Athletics – News – Mo Farah has reached a crossroads in his career.

Does he turn right for a new life as a marathoner, or does he turn left to combine the challenge of 26.2 miles with the security of his on-going brilliance on the track?

The answer to what is the right course might not be discovered until the summer of 2016 when he arrives at the Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro as the defending 5,000m and 10,000m champion.

But there lies the problem as much as the solution.

In less than three years he could have established himself as one of the world's leading men at the marathon and be faced with what distance to prioritise.

It goes without saying the 'problem' is a happy one and all indications at this stage are that he is planning to combine the 10,000m with the marathon by the time of Rio.

In this day and age, of greater intensity and scrutiny of events, it would be something quite extraordinary to win both.

But Farah has shown in the past three years how he deals with challenges as his record as a double Olympic and world champion and triple European gold-medallist proves.

He has yet to run the full marathon – that moment will arrive in April when he makes his debut in London – but he has impressed at half the distance.

His debut was in New York in 2011 when he broke the British record as he won in 60:23 and then in February this year, Farah triumphed in New Orleans in 60:59. A few weeks later, to sample the course for 2014, he ran the first half of the London Marathon but now arguably his biggest test on the roads will arrive this Sunday in Newcastle.

At the Great North Run, Farah faces two of the sport's greatest protagonists in Ethiopians Haile Gebrselassie and Kenenisa Bekele.

Gebrselassie, now 40, is a former marathon world record holder among his incredible list of honours while Bekele, 31, is world record-holder at both the 5,000m and 10,000m, and has been troubled by the effects of injuries over the past two years.

At 30, Farah is just coming into his prime for this change of career – and there is also history at stake too.

This race from Newcastle to the coastal finish in South Shields has been run since 1981 and not since 1985 has a British man triumphed. Steve Kenyon was the last, but Farah will start as favourite to bridge that gap.

While winning will be his aim, you suspect it is not the whole issue.

Farah commands the track like he owns it. His victories in the 5,000m and 10,000m at the IAAF World Championships in Moscow last month was evidence of that in the way he controlled both races  – whether he was at the front or at the back.

The Africans tried to break him but Farah would not allow it to happen.

But as such a newcomer to the roads, fresh nuances await him which are all part of the learning process.

How often does a marathoner make a surge for home, only to be overtaken in the final mile? It happens regularly. While, equally, how long do you wait in a pack before making a mark?

Farah will be entering a new world in London in April but this Sunday will be another valuable lesson in adapting to what lies ahead.

Left or right? That crossroads awaits and it will be fascinating to see which way he goes.

 

UKA Athletics – News