Mo Farah hailed as best of British after twin triumph

Mo Farah has been widely endorsed as the best of British athletics. Credit: Dave Thompson/PA Wire

Mo Farah has been hailed as Britain's greatest ever athlete after repeating his Olympic success with a double victory at the World Championships in Russia.

Farah outsprinted his rivals to win the 5,000m title last night to add to the gold he captured in the 10,000m last Saturday in Moscow.

The twin triumphs saw the 30-year-old become only the second man in history to clinch two distance event titles at both the Olympics and the Worlds.

Mo Farah held off Kenya's Isiah Kiplangat Koech to claim the 5,000m victory. Credit: Adam Davy/PA Wire

Former Olympic 400m runner Roger Black told ITV News the Londoner's achievements on the track meant the UK is "witnessing the greatest British athlete we have ever seen".

The scale of Mo Farah's achievements hit home. Credit: Adam Davy/PA Wire

Black had watched on the edge of his seat as Farah chased down the victory in a time of 13 minutes and 26.99 seconds.

BBC Sport commentator Brendan Foster also endorsed Farah's place as a class above, saying "for my money he is the greatest we've ever had", while British Athletics looked to develop it as a trend on Twitter.

British athlete Jessica Ennis-Hill and former Olympic hurdler Colin Jackson were among the sporting community who took to Twitter to congratulate the British hero.

The only person who seemed shocked was the man himself, who told the BBC post-race:

Only Ethiopian Kenenisa Bekele had claimed two distance victories at the athletics world's two biggest meetings prior to Farah.

He claimed gold twice at the Beijing Olympics in 2008 and another two victories a year later at the World Championships in Berlin.

Mo Farah delivered his trademark 'Mobot' cerebration for a second time in Moscow. Credit: EMPICS Sport

But within British athletics, Farah is now clearly unrivalled for titles.

His Sochi success saw him collect his fourth and fifth outdoor wins at a major championship, moving him two clear of triple jumper Jonathan Edwards and decathlete Daley Thompson.