Mo Farah wins thrilling 5,000 in Zurich to end track career
ZURICH, Switzerland — Four-time Olympic champion Mo Farah’s track career ended with a thrilling win in a sprawling four-man finish to the 5,000 meters at the Weltklasse Diamond League meeting on Thursday.
Farah avenged his world championships loss by Muktar Edris, who fell over the finish line as just 0.13 seconds separated the first four men. They also shared the top-four places in London two weeks ago.
Britain’s Farah doggedly held his lead to clock 13 minutes 6.05 seconds, 0.04 ahead of Paul Chelimo of the United States and Edris. Chelimo’s disqualification for pushing Farah and Edris across the line was announced more than one hour later.
Edris was already stumbling when nudged from his left side, forcing him to bring down his Ethiopia teammate Yomif Kejelcha who was upgraded to third from fourth.
“Oh man, I had to fight the last 200 meters there. I managed to hold them,” Farah said in a television interview. The 34-year-old runner will switch to road races.
Earlier, Qatar’s Barshim won his event clearing 2.36 meters, one centimeter above his gold-medal height in London.
Ruth Jebet, the Kenyan-born 20-year-old runner who represents Bahrain, clocked the second fastest time ever in the women’s 3,000 steeplechase.
Jebet’s 8 minutes, 55.29 seconds was less than three seconds outside the record she set a year ago in Paris. World champion Emma Coburn of the U.S. was fourth.
Isaac Makwala was denied a chance to run his favored 400 event in London by illness, but the Botswana runner showed what track fans missed by clocking a 43.95 winning time on Thursday that was 0.03 faster than Wayde van Niekerk’s gold-medal performance. Makwala then dropped to the track to do some pushups.
Two world champion sprinters were beaten into fourth place on a cool 18-degree (64-Fahrenheit) evening.
Dafne Schippers of the Netherlands faded into fourth in the 200 watching worlds bronze medalist Shaunae Miller-Uibo race to a Bahamas national record of 21.88. Olympic champion Elaine Thompson of Jamaica was second in 22.00.
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