Mo Farah has ended weeks of speculation and uncertainty by announcing he will stand by Alberto Salazar, the American coach who helped turn him into a double Olympic and three-times world champion.
Salazar has been dogged by allegations that he violated a series of anti-doping rules and is also under investigation by the United States Anti-Doping Agency. But Farah said he felt he had “to believe” in his coach’s impassioned12,000-word response to allegations made by the BBC and the US news website ProPublica earlier this month and would continue to work with him.
In a statement Farah said: “Following all the speculation I want to make it clear where I stand. Although it’s been a difficult time, I asked Alberto to respond to the allegations made against him and he has now done so in full.
“As someone I’ve worked with for many years, I feel I have to believe in Alberto and the evidence he has provided. Based on that evidence, I will continue to work with him and hope now that I can focus on what I do best – training hard to win medals for my country.”
Salazar, meanwhile, has been in Eugene in Oregon where he watched Farah’s training partner Galen Rupp – who the BBC has accused of taking testosterone when he was a 16-year-old – win the 10,000m at the US trials for the seventh consecutive year.
Speaking in public for the first time since the Panorama documentary, Salazar said he was “feeling good” despite the allegations swimming around him and confirmed that Barry Fudge, the head of endurance for British Athletics, was carrying out his instructions while Farah trains in Font–Romeu in France. “I speak to Barry every day,” Salazar added.
However he ruled out legal action against the BBC and ProPublica, adding: “I’m not a vindictive person.” Instead he insisted he wanted to return his focus to his athletes. “It’s good to get back to racing,” he added. “The last couple of months have been tough. When you’re accused of horrible stuff, and you know you’re innocent, that’s a lot of stress. After getting my statement out, I feel much better.”
There is no suggestion that Farah has done anything wrong since joining up with Salazar in 2011. But he has inevitably been drawn into the whirlpool of allegations surrounding his coach and training partner Rupp.
Last week Farah insisted he had never taken performance-enhancing drugs and said his two missed tests before London 2012 were the only ones of his career. It is understood by the Guardian that Farah told anti-doping chiefs he was asleep when he failed to hear the doorbell during his second missed test in 2011.
In a careful worded statement, UK Athletics said it “noted and respected” Farah’s decision. UK Athletics’ CEO Niels de Vos added: “As is normal at this time of the year, Mo is currently training at altitude under the guidance of British Athletics as he prepares for the August defence of his world titles in Beijing.
“ As has always been the case, we will continue to take responsibility for all nutritional, medical and sport science elements of Mo Farah’s training regime.”
Farah will return to the track for the first time since the allegations were made when he races over 5,000m in the Diamond League meeting in Lausanne on 9 July. He will then run the 1500m in Monaco on 17 July as he builds up to August’s world championships in Beijing.
