Today in Monaco, British runner Mo Farah won the men's 5000m run in 12:53.11, a new national record, meet record, and leading time in the world for the year. For those not familiar, Mo Farah has been essentially unbeatable on the track and the roads the last eight or nine months, winning the indoor European Championship 3000m and 5000m, the New York City Half-Marathon, the Pre-Classic 10,000m, the 10,000m at the Birmingham meet, and now the 5,000m in Monaco to name only a few. In short, perhaps no male distance runner is running better in the world in 2011 than Britain's Mo Farah, an uncommon occurance in the sport these days where so often distance races have been dominated by runners from East Africa. With the World Championships in Daegu, South Korean a little over a month away, Mo Farah seems the man to beat in the 5 and/or 10k.
Which is why I was a bit surprised to find a thread on Letsrun.com a few hours after the race in Monaco concluded, claiming that Mo Farah's success over the past year was the result of doping. To be fair, fans of many (if not all) sports have dealt with doping among their best athletes at some point recently. Whether it's juiced-up home-run hitters in baseball or alternatively-medicated footballers from North Korea (scientists are still trying to figure that one out), it isn't a stretch to see why followers of sport have become somewhat jaded by the standout performer. Win too many races these days, and you're bound to attract accusations of cheating by some laptop-touting fellow. It would seem a characteristic of the times, and it makes me a touch sad.
Stand-out performances in sport are one important reason why people pay it any attention at all; successful performers attract followers, and unsuccessful performers lose them. And perhaps it is in part because of this relationship that so many talented performers have taken to illegal performance-enhancers. Yet to simply accuse a successful performer of cheating because of his or her recent success is nothing more than a baseless accusation, intolerable in nearly every other arena except sport. Accuse someone on false premises in court, and you could go to jail for libel. The thing is, accusations, even false accusations, can have a negative effect on the accused, and it is of fundamental importance to a free society that a man or woman's reputation is based upon their choices, and not baseless labels contrived by others (political campaigns aside). As there is no evidence that Mr. Farah has ever taken performance-enhancers, the recent thread about him cheating is an assertion without water.
It is for that reason that I will continue to support Mo Farah as he competes and grows as an athlete and as a person. Perhaps one day evidence will emerge that his recent run of success was indeed the result of cheating, but until that time I will give him the benefit of the doubt. It's not easy training as he does, or managing the expectations that go with holding the world lead in the 5k one month out from the World Championships. Personally, I look forward to seeing how he does.
A happy Friday to you all :)
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