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Sir Mo Farah receives knighthood from the Queen for services to athletics

Arise, Sir Mo! The sports star has received his knighthood

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Sharnaz Shahid
Deputy Online Editor
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Sir Mo Farah was all smiles as he received his knighthood from the Queen, describing the precious moment as an "incredible honour". The four-time Olympic champion, 34, arrived at Buckingham Palace on Tuesday with his wife Tania, as he prepared to be rewarded for his services to athletics. "Over the years you dream of becoming something or doing something in your career, to take it to the highest level and become an Olympic champion - that was always the dream," the sports star told reporters. "As an eight-year-old coming from Somalia and not speaking a word of English, to be recognised by your country, it is incredible."

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Sir Mo Farah has officially received his knighthood

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Mo, who won 5,000m and 10,000m gold at London 2012 and Rio 2016, has collected six world titles in addition to his four Olympic golds. When asked what it was liked to receive the honour from the Queen, Mo revealed she told him he has been "going too long" and asked him if he has retired. "I said 'No, I am going to run the London Marathon - I want to go into roads'," he shared. Last month, Mo confirmed that he was returning to Britain indefinitely after parting ways with his American coach Alberto Salazar.

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"I can't wait to be back home and can’t wait to see my team Arsenal at the Emirates," he shared in a video posted on Twitter. He will now work with Gary Lough, who previously coached - and is married to - women's marathon runner Paula Radcliffe. In an interview with The Sun, Mo added: "I chose to work with Gary over others because I’ve known him for a very long time - since I was 16 - and we get on well." Elaborating further, he continued: "Gary successfully coached Paula Radcliffe, Britain's greatest-ever marathon runner, who I've always looked up to since I was a kid, and has an in-depth understanding of what is needed to achieve real results at marathon distance."