MOSCOW, August 9 (R-Sport) – A day ahead of racing for the world 10,000m title, British athlete Mo Farah is in even better form than when he won two Olympic gold medals last year, the British athletics team's performance director Neil Black said Friday.
Farah, the Olympic 5,000m and 10,000m champion, laid down a marker for the world championships, which start Saturday, by winning the 3,000m at last month's Anniversary Games in London in personal best time.
"He's in great shape, he's looking forward to [the championships]," Black said. "He's probably got a little bit stronger. He's worked a little bit more on his acceleration. He's certainly got more confidence."
Farah is the defending world champion in the 5,000m, and won silver in the 10,000m at the last world championships in Daegu, South Korea, in 2011, when he was pipped to victory by Ethiopian runner Ibrahim Jeilan.
The men's 10,000m will be held Saturday, with the 5,000m on August 16.
Black had words of reassurance regarding the medal hopes of Britain’s Olympic long jump champion Greg Rutherford, who is trying to recover from a hamstring injury.
"The incremental progression has shocked us," he said. "I'm sure he's going to run fast and jump far."
The men's long jump final is August 16.
The championships are the biggest athletics event to be held in Moscow since the 1980 Olympics and will run through August 18 at the Russian capital's vast Luzhniki arena.
