Farah sets sights on winning return
Mo Farah will accept nothing less than a victory in his first race of 2013 on Saturday, with the double Olympic champion acutely aware that he is now the man everyone else wants to beat.
Farah only arrived back in Britain on Thursday after a six-week training stint in Kenya, but is determined to bring the curtain down on the British Athletics Grand Prix in Birmingham by winning over 3,000 metres at the National Indoor Arena.
"It was nice to get real training done, I've not done it for a long time, since just before the Olympics," said Farah, who admitted recently he was around a month behind training partner and Olympic 10,000m silver medallist Galen Rupp.
"I have done some good training and good mileage so I am a lot further on than where I was.
"I am always motivated and I have to be even more motivated now, because when you're at the top there are more people who want to knock you down. There are more eyes on you. After the Olympics I just wanted to spend time with my family. Then you have to go pick up the training. If I don't I know I'll get beat."
Birmingham will be Farah's only indoor race of the season - he immediately switches to a half-marathon in New Orleans next weekend - with the main focus being the World Championships in Moscow this summer.
Farah was beaten into second place by just 0.26 seconds in the 10,000m in Daegu in 2011, and although he bounced back superbly to win gold over 5,000m, he admits that loss to Ethiopia's unheralded Ibrahim Jeilan still hurts.
"There is a World Championship in August and I want to defend my title and try to win the 10,000 this time," he added. "That race nags away but you learn from your mistakes and I have learnt a lot from that race."
Farah has set numerous records in Birmingham over the years, but with a lot of miles in his legs and a less-than-stellar field against him, should be content with blowing away the cobwebs with a comfortable win.
"It's about trying to win a race," he added. "For me, 2013, you must win because it's the first race."
