Emotional Farah wins last British track race
SIR Mo Farah triumphed at the Diamond League in Birmingham as he signed off in his final track race in Britain.
The four-time Olympic champion claimed victory in the 3,000m at the Alexander Stadium in seven minutes 38.64 seconds last night.
He will retire from the track at the Diamond League final in Zurich on Thursday to focus on marathon racing.
Farah said it has been an “amazing” time for him but insisted his focus on Sunday was winning the race, rather than getting caught up in the occasion of it being his last track event on British soil.
He said on BBC One: “It’s been an amazing week. Emotion was high, not as high as London (at the World Championships), but one last time at home, great support from the home crowd, really enjoyed it.
“I was just trying to think about the race and how to win and who’s there, and tac- tically get that right.”
Farah, who thanked the fans in attendance and everyone who has supported him during his career, admits he is now looking forward to competing with a little less pressure on him as he prepares to switch to marathon running.
“I had an amazing career and I just want to continue and see what I can do on the road, without having the pressure and just really enjoy it,” he added. Belgium’s Luca Brecel staged a superb come- back to beat five-time world champion Ronnie O’Sullivan in the quarter-finals of the Evergrande China Championship.
O’Sullivan l ooked on course for a comfortable victory in Guangzhou as he moved into a 4-1 lead with the aid of breaks of 85 in the opening frame and 55 in the fifth.
However, Brecel had other ideas and made back-to-back centuries to reduce his deficit, before fluking the final red in the eighth frame to then claim victory in the decider.
The United States retained the Solheim Cup last night with a 16.5-11.5 victory over Europe at Des Moines in Iowa.
The European team attempted a brave fight-back on the final day but could not claw back a five point deficit.
Cristie Kerr and Paula Creamer set their side on course for victory before the triumph was confirmed by Lizette Salas defeating Jodi Ewart Shadoff.