Nothing being left to chance by Farah

Mo has done his homework in run-up to bid to secure a ‘double-double’

Mo Farah has worked to ensure he will not be taken by surprise by a rival as he bids to complete a historic ‘double double’ of Olympic long-distance titles today.

Already the first British track and field athlete to win three Olympic crowns, the 33-year-old will bid to continue his global domination of distance running when he goes for gold over 5,000m.

Success would make him the second man after ‘Flying Finn’ Lasse Viren to win 5,000m and 10,000m gold at two games.

It would also, surely, make him Great Britain’s finest ever track athlete.

Since he was shocked by an Ethiopian he had never even heard of, Ibrahim Jeilan, in the 10,000m final at the 2011 World Championships in Daegu – his last loss at a major – he has left no stone unturned in his preparations.

“I am a geek,” he said. “I do watch races and I do try and learn something about it, look at it, see what I could do.

“I watch myself a little bit, just try and do my homework a bit.

“I had to learn the hard way, in Daegu,” he said.

“I didn’t even have a clue who he was, nobody knew.”

The Londoner knows this will be one of the toughest tests of his career.

The Ethiopians are out to end his rein, and getting over the 10,000m is becoming harder the older he gets, his legs taking longer to recover.

He knows the trio of challengers – Muktar Edris, Dejen Gebremeskel and Hagos Gebrhiwet – he will face this time around have the potential to upset him, provided they can run the finishing speed out of him by making the race quick.

Meanwhile, Lynsey Sharp refused to wade into the Caster Semenya controversy, but is adamant the South African is not a certain gold medallist.

The Scot advanced to today’s 800m final as second-quickest qualifier behind Semenya, who found herself at the centre of a gender row following her victory at the 2009 World Championships and had to undergo gender testing before being cleared to return to competition.

The way Semenya appeared to stroll through the semi-final suggested victory is a near formality, but Sharp maintains the 25-year-old can be beaten.

“Anything can happen in a final,” Sharp said.

“We’ve seen that enough in the last seven to 10 days. There’s been so many shocks and surprises.

“I think it’s going to be a really competitive race.”

Semenya qualified in one minute 58.15 seconds, but earlier this year ran her personal best and the fastest time in the world since 2008, 1:55.33.

Picture: PA. Mo Farah has his sights set on repeating his London 2012 feat and adding the 5,000m to his 10,000m gold.