2016 Olympic Games

Mo Farah Wins Double Olympic Gold, Chelimo DQed Then Reinstated For Silver

Mo Farah Wins Double Olympic Gold, Chelimo DQed Then Reinstated For Silver

In a thrilling final kick, Great Britain's Mo Farah earned Olympic gold in the men's 5K final in 13:03.30. The performance marks Farah's second Olympic gold

Aug 21, 2016 by Taylor Dutch
Mo Farah Wins Double Olympic Gold, Chelimo DQed Then Reinstated For Silver
In a thrilling final kick, Great Britain's Mo Farah earned Olympic gold in the men's 5K final in 13:03.30. The performance marks Farah's second Olympic gold in Rio after winning the 10K. It also marks his fourth Olympic gold after winning the 5K and 10K double at the 2012 Olympic Games in London.



The fight for silver and bronze proved to be a complicated affair after runner-up Paul Chelimo, Muktar Edris (4th), and Mo Ahmed (5th) were disqualified due to lane infringement. But after the initial ruling and several appeals, Chelimo and Ahmed were both reinstated. Chelimo stands as the silver medalist. He is the first American to earn an Olympic medal in the 5K since 1964. 


Chelimo followed Farah for silver in 13:03.90 and Hagos Gebrhiwet of Ethiopia claimed bronze. Initially following the disqualifications, the results listed Gebrhiwet in second and moved Bernard Lagat from sixth to third.

Chelimo's silver medal performance marks the 25-year-old's first Olympic final of his career. It's just his second international championship after finishing seventh in the 3K at the world indoor championships last March.

Gebrhiwet's bronze marks his first Olympic medal of his career. The 22-year-old earned bronze at the 2015 world championships and silver at the 2013 world championships.

Prior to Chelimo and Ahmed's reinstatement, the official IAAF results stated that Chelimo, Edris, and Ahmed's initial violation consisted of lane infringement according to Rule 163.3b in the IAAF competition rule book.


The Ethiopian duo of Gebrihwet and Gebremeskel attempted to break Farah early on in the race by throwing down a brisk pace. Farah started the race in the back of the lead pack.

The Ethiopian compatriots brought the lead pack into the first 1K in 2:37 with Gebremeskel leading. Farah started to move up in the pack after the 1K mark and found himself in seventh place, tucked into the group.

Meanwhile, Chelimo situated himself in third behind the Ethiopian duo, biding his time for the perfect move.

The Ethiopians continued to switch off in the lead, exchanging pacing duties through the 2K mark, which they flew through in 5:15.

With five laps remaining, Farah charged to the front and established his front-running position. The British athlete brought the pack through 3K in 8:29. The pace slowed slightly, bringing the entire field back together.

Farah continued to lead the pack through the bell lap, where he unleashed a furious kick for the finish line. Chelimo, Gebrhiwet and Ahmed battled right behind him for second and third position.

The final homestretch resulted in a dominant push from Farah for gold, a powerful surge from Chelimo to claim silver, and a great effort from Gebrhiwet for bronze.

Unfortunately, Chelimo first learned of the initial disqualification in the middle of a live interview on NBC. 


He eventually received the good news right before the medal ceremony where he officially accepted his Olympic silver medal.