Mo Farah accused of insulting Andy Vernon
Double Olympic champion Mo Farah was accused of reigniting his feud with British team-mate Andy Vernon after winning the 5,000m at the Diamond League in Lausanne, Switzerland last night.
Read more: Farah – Prove I’m a cheat or leave me alone
Farah was competing for the first time since claims emerged certifying that his coach, Alberto Salazar, had violated anti-doping rules, but surged home euphorically in 13 minutes, 11.17 seconds.
But that mood turned sour when Vernon, who finished 15th, allegedly attempted to congratulate Farah on his victory, adding to the public row which the duo became embroiled in earlier this year.
“I went to shake his hand and he turned his back on me and told me to f*** off,” said Vernon. “I wanted to bury the hatchet, I just wanted to end it. It’s in the past, I don’t know why we can’t just forget about it.”
Farah had insisted that success had answered his critics in the wake of the Salazar affair. He said: “This victory is a way to answer some of the critics regarding my coach.”
Teenage sprinter Zharnel Hughes, meanwhile, ran a new personal best time of 20.13 to win the 200m. The 19-year-old was one of five overseas-born athletes cleared to represent Britain a little over two weeks ago.