Kenenisa Bekele won the battle of the distance greats when he held off a late surge from Mo Farah to win the Great North Run half marathon on Sunday. (BBC News)
Ethiopia’s Kenenisa Bekele saw off double world and Olympic champion Mo Farah’s late surge to win the Great North Run in a thrilling sprint finish.
Britain’s Farah, 30, chased down Bekele in the last 400m in a great finale but was pipped to the line by one second.
Another Ethiopian, Haile Gebrselassie, was a distant third after falling behind in the last of the 13.1 miles.
“I’m disappointed but I was second to a great athlete,” said Farah after finishing in one hour and 10 seconds.
The three distance-running greats – Farah, Bekele and Gebrselassie – boast 12 world titles and seven Olympic gold medals between them and were together until 31-year-old Bekele, competing in his first half marathon, made his break down a steep slope.
Watch: Kenenisa Beats Mo Farah in dramatic Great North Run finale
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