Sir Mo Farah ‘hounded for money’ by man whose name he took when he came to UK as Olympian forced to take action
SIR Mo Farah has allegedly been hounded for money by the man whose name he took.
The Olympic hero, 41, offered to help the other Mo, after a 2022 TV show but it ended in emotional blackmail, it is claimed.
A source said: “It’s so sad.”
Sir Mo claims he has had to change his phone number after “incessant demands” for cash from his namesake.
Sir Mo promised to stay in touch, and it is understood he has sent up to £5,000 to his namesake.
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But the other Mo, 40, and around ten others are alleged to have hassled him for money after getting hold of the long-distance star’s mobile number.
Sources say Sir Mo sees it as emotional blackmail, and has not spoken to his namesake for months.
A source said: “Sir Mo felt he was being harassed and hounded.
“He has taken a step back. He didn’t want to make a big fuss but thought it better to not engage.
“He has had to change his phone number. It’s unfair Sir Mo is having to deal with this.
“He feels he’s the victim. He is just tired, and thinks it’s so sad.”
The pair were brought together in BBC’s The Real Mo Farah in which Sir Mo revealed he was trafficked to the UK after his dad died in Somalia’s civil war and his mum sent him and twin Hassan to live with family.
The athlete revealed his name is actually Hussein Abdi Kahin and that he took “Mo Farah” from a child’s passport used to fly him to Heathrow in 1993.
He has had to change his phone number. It’s unfair Sir Mo is having to deal with this. He feels he’s the victim
Source close to Sir Mo
Later in the show, Sir Mo tracked his namesake to Istanbul, Turkey, where he was studying.
But the real Mo now says they have not spoken since December 2023 and claims Sir Mo reneged on a promise to get him a visa.
Speaking from his home in Somalia’s capital Mogadishu, the other Mo said: “Mo got what he wanted and now he doesn’t care whether I live or die. He made a lot of promises and said he would stop using my name and give me my name back.
“He told me he wanted to stop living a lie, but he is still living a lie.
“He said he would help me get a tourist visa so I could visit my mum in England, but I’ve spent two years waiting and nothing has happened.”
Sir Mo became the world’s greatest long-distance runner winning double golds in London 2012 and Rio 2016, and shares four children with wife Tania. But his namesake’s life has been beset with tragedy.
The other Mo said: “My mother left, I was left with her older sister Amina in Nairobi, and when she died from kidney failure in 2005, my world fell apart.
“I wanted to become a cricketer. I went for trials for Kenya under-19s and would have had much more opportunity if I’d taken the visa and moved to England.”
The other Mo only discovered his link with Sir Mo after the 2012 Olympics.
He said: “Some uncles were visiting from the UK, they said, ‘Do you know the athlete, Mo Farah? Do you know he is using your name?’ I couldn’t believe it.
“I’d watched him on TV and clapped for him when he was heading to the finish saying, ‘Go, Mo’.
“I was a big fan. But even then I didn’t try to get in touch with him.
“The first time we spoke was when Sir Mo’s adopted aunt Kinsi contacted me on Facebook and said, ‘‘Mo is looking for you. He is going to give you everything. He’s going to give you back your name and take you abroad’.
It is not Mo’s responsibility to be looking after the son of people who mistreated him and trafficked him to the UK
Source close to Sir Mo
“We kept in touch by phone after that and, after the documentary came out the TV crew kept me hidden in a hotel for six weeks to make sure no one could find me.
“One BBC producer even discussed making a second documentary in which I would get to meet Sir Mo in London, but that didn’t happen.”
Last night sources close to Sir Mo painted a different picture of why the relationship has broken down. An insider said: “Sir Mo has sympathy. This man was also a casualty of events out of his control as a child. But it is not Mo’s responsibility. The people who were adults and responsible for them clearly didn’t do their jobs properly.
“But it certainly wouldn’t be appropriate for Mo to use his influence on any UK immigration policy or process. Quite the opposite.
“This isn’t Mo’s job to sort out. That said, on a personal level, Mo has been in contact with Somali Mo for a number of years.
“Communication ceased in the summer when Mo had to distance himself. Anytime there’s something on Mo’s socials, when it might look like he has had some kind of financial gain, a deal with Nike or whatever, they are demanding why has he not sent money.”
Last night the other Mo insisted: “I’m not a bad person. There is no way I would tell anyone to hound him. I didn’t give anyone his number so I don’t know who has been doing this. It’s not anyone in my family.
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“The last time I messaged him I said, ‘If you don’t want to answer my call, it’s OK. You do what is best for you, I’ll do what’s best for me’.”
Sir Mo was approached for comment.
CONFESSION SHOCKED UK
By Joe Morgan
NATIONAL treasure Sir Mo Farah shocked the country when he admitted lying about his identity all his life, saying: “The truth is I’m not who you think I am.”
He revealed on TV two years ago that his real name was Hussein Abdi Kahin and he was trafficked into the UK as a child after his dad was killed in Somalia’s civil war.
The running great and father of three told BBC1 documentary The Real Mo Farah: “I want to feel normal and not feel like you’re holding on to something.”
The Sun, right, reported Sir Mo feared being stripped of his citizenship for lying on his application but politicians joined celebrities in rallying round.