Mo Farah sets new indoor record for two miles as he wins in Birmingham
Last Updated: 22/02/15 7:48am
Mo Farah has set a new world indoor record of eight minutes, 3.40 seconds over two miles at the Sainsbury's Indoor Grand Prix in Birmingham.
The build-up to the event at the Barclaycard Arena had been dominated by the double Olympic champion's Twitter row with Great Britain team-mate Andy Vernon, but Farah let his legs do the talking on the track as he stormed to the first world record of his career.
Farah's time eclipsed Kenenisa Bekele's world best of 8mins 4.35secs, which the Ethiopian set at the same meeting seven years ago.
The 31-year-old, who received a huge cheer when introduced to the crowd, sat on the shoulder of Kenya's Paul Koech before hitting the front with seven laps remaining and pulling clear of the field.
From then on it was Farah against the clock and he came home almost a second inside Bekele's mark.
"So many times I have been asked, 'Am I ever going to break a world record', so it's nice to say I've done it once now," Farah said. "I want to be back on the track, that's where I belong.
"It (the row with Vernon) inspired me, I wanted to do it. Whatever's happened has happened, we've got to move on, but at the same time I'm an athlete, that's what I do best. I just have to keep running."
Vernon was quick to praise Farah after the race, tweeting: "Everything aside that was a cracking run @Mo_Farah. Congratulations on the new WR."
But, asked if he had a message for Vernon, Farah added: "No, at the end of the day whatever's done is done. I just have to move on.
"I think it's too soon to say anything right now. I've moved on and put that behind me. I want to keep running well."
Meanwhile, Greg Rutherford began his 2015 season with a bang by setting four new indoor personal bests as he won the long jump in Birmingham with a world leading 8.17 metres.
The Olympic champion saved his best for his final jump to snatch victory from China's Xinglong Gao with a leap which was just one centimetre off Chris Tomlinson's British record.
The Milton Keynes athlete came into the year with an indoor PB of 8.00m, but proceeded to jump 8.03m, 8.08m, 8.10m and then 8.17m.
Rutherford remains unlikely to compete at the European Indoor Championships in Prague next month but world No 1 Jenny Meadows underlined her status as favourite for 800m gold at the event with another win, clocking two minutes 1.25 seconds.
Nigel Levine also warmed up for Prague by winning the 400m in 46.43secs, with compatriot Jarryd Dunn finishing second in 46.67s to seal his place on the plane as well.
Guy Learmonth and James Bowness both guaranteed their spots on the British team in the 800m, running inside the qualifying time of 1:48.00 despite finishing seventh and eighth respectively.
Dina Asher-Smith, the world junior 100m champion and gold medal contender at the European Indoors, was forced to pull out of the 60m as a precaution, but her compatriot Rachel Johncock sealed her place in Prague with a PB of 7.24 in the heats.
