Olympic Track Champion Gets His Stolen Phone Back By Running After Thieves

Sir Mo Farah chased down the thieves who grabbed the phone, left in a van but returned it when he caught up to them

An Olympic champion had to resort to his profession to chase down property that belonged to him after witnessing some thieves stealing a mobile phone that he owned.

According to The Times, 41-year-old Sir Mo Farah, a four-time Olympic track winner, chased down some men who allegedly tried to steal his mobile phone while he was out for a jog in his neighborhood last week. Farah was with his wife when the incident took place.

While running with his wife, he saw a white van pull up alongside a private road he usually exercises on and left his phone. He noticed the van with two men moving slowly and then saw one of the two men in the van grab the phone. As the man headed back into the van, Farah instinctively took off in pursuit of the white van. The champion runner caught up to the van, and as his wife looked on, the men gave him his phone back and drove off.

An investigation was initiated on the estate, which has around-the-clock security.

Sadly, Farah has been a target for thieves in the past. In 2019, while staying at a fellow Olympic gold medal winner, Haile Gebrselassie’s hotel in Addis Ababa, Farah had a watch, two phones, and £2,500 (3,167.54 USD) stolen from him. Farah accused Gebrselassie of not doing enough to help him find out about the theft, as Gebrselassie accused Farah’s entourage of “disgraceful conduct.”

People reported that Farah is one of Britain’s most decorated track athletes in history. He won double golds in the 5,000 and 10,000 meters at the 2012 and 2016 Olympics. His medal tallies are six gold medals as well as two silver medals at the World Championships during his running career.

Farah married his wife, Tania Nell, in 2010. The couple has three children: twin daughters, Aisha and Amani, and a son named Hussein. Nell also has another daughter, Rihanna.