Farah made the shocking admission to the British media
Farah is among the UK’s most decorated Olympians. © Zac Goodwin / PA Images via Getty Images
British long-distance running legend Sir Mo Farah has said he was illegally trafficked to the UK and forced into a life of domestic servitude as a nine-year-old.
The four-time Olympic gold medalist has previously told the story of how he left his homeland Somalia aged eight to meet up with his father after being sent to London with two of his five siblings to seek a better life.
But in a BBC documentary titled ‘The Real Mo Farah’ which will be broadcast on British television on Wednesday, the 39-year-old track icon recalled how a stranger trafficked him to the UK capital under the new assumed name which the public knows him by today.
“Most people know me as Mo Farah, but it’s not my name or it’s not the reality,” explained Farah, who said he had been motivated by his children to tell his story.
“The real story is I was born in Somaliland, north of Somalia, as Hussein Abdi Kahin. Despite what I’ve said in the past, my parents never lived in the UK.”
Farah says he was treated badly upon his arrival in Britain by a married couple who he worked for, but was as rescued by a PE teacher named Alan Watkinson who also helped him to apply for UK citizenship as Mo Farah.
Olympic gold medalist Sir Mo Farah has revealed he was trafficked to the UK as a child, given a new name and forced to work a domestic servant His real name is Hussein Abdi Kahinhttps://t.co/wN01Xd74nMpic.twitter.com/LEvN9pbcmW
— philip lewis (@Phil_Lewis_) July 11, 2022
“When I was four my dad was killed in the civil war, you know as a family we were torn apart,” Farah said.
“I was separated from my mother, and I was brought into the UK illegally under the name of another child called Mohamed Farah.”
As war raged in Somalia, Farah and his twin brother Hassan were reportedly sent to live in neighboring country Djobouti with their uncle for their own safety.
A woman visited the house several times to observe him, and Farah was told that she would soon be taking him to Europe to live with family while he would be renamed Mohamed.
“As a kid, you never think beyond what you’ve been told,” Farah said, before describing the harsh reality which awaited him upon his arrival on British shores.
“I had all the contact details for my relative and once we got to her house, the lady took it off me and right in front of me ripped them up and put it in the bin, and at that moment I knew I was in trouble,” Farah said.
“Family means everything to me and, you know, as a parent, you always teach your kids to be honest, but I feel like I’ve always had that private thing where I could never be me and tell what’s really happened.”
“I’ve been keeping it for so long, it’s been difficult because you don’t want to face it and often my kids ask questions, ‘Dad, how come this?’ And you’ve always got an answer for everything, but you haven’t got an answer for that.”
Farah’s wife Tania is said to have noticed holes in his previous family story. Leading up to their wedding in 2010, she realized that there were “lots of missing pieces” to Farah’s story and eventually “wore him down” into telling the truth.
Farah was concerned about his immigration status now that his confessions have come to light, but the UK Home Office has already confirmed that “no action whatsoever will be taken against Sir Mo and to suggest otherwise is wrong.”
A hero of the London 2012 and Rio 2016 Olympic Games, where he won the gold medal in the 5,000 and 10,000 meters, Farah failed to qualify for the Tokyo 2020 edition of the athletics spectacle.
In recent years, Farah has faced questions over his association with disgraced former American coach Alberto Salazar, who was banned for anti-doping violations in 2019.
Farah has always denied any wrongdoing during the time he trained under Salazar, and himself has never faced any charges.
