Accused: Mo Farah has claimed his GB teammate Andy Vernon said he was not European, after their success at the 2014 European Championships Photo: GETTY
Anger: Mo Farah hit back at Andy Vernon on Twitter this week (GETTY)
Mo Farah has escalated his public row with Andy Vernon by claiming the bad blood between the pair dates back to an accusation his British team-mate made that Farah was “not European”.
Britain’s two leading long-distance runners were involved in a heated exchange on Twitter earlier this week when Farah labelled Vernon an “embarrassment” as the pair traded verbal blows.
Explaining that they are “not best friends and never will be”, Somali-born Farah revealed on Friday that the animosity dates back to a dig Vernon made about his nationality after the pair had completed a 10,000m British one-two at the European Championships in 2014.
“He came second in the race I won, we were sitting down together and there were a number of staff and athletes there too,” said Farah. “One comment he made, which I didn't really like, was to say that he should have won the gold.
“I was like: ‘What, the gold should have been given to you?' And I was like: ‘Because he was the only European guy?' “You can't say something like that. I was just biting my tongue at the time. That hurt me.”
Farah, who has won two Olympic and three world titles since moving to Britain aged eight, completed a 5,000m and 10,000m European double in Zurich with Vernon picking up medals behind him on both occasions.
Admitting he did make a comment about being European champion, Vernon explained: “'Look, I did make a joke about being European Champion but in the context of the conversation - which was very lighthearted - I honestly didn't think I'd caused offence. If I did then I apologise but I really feel this has been taken out of context to shift the focus back on me.
"I said it on a table full of people and we were all having a joke at the time.
“We had just raced and the team was all in high spirits. The whole table was having a joke and a laugh and it was just a comment to carry on the jokes. He laughed at the time.
“If he did take it out of context it wasn’t meant that way and I apologise.”
Vernon later told BBC Radio Solent that his comments were “tongue in cheek” and were not a reference to nationality, insisting he has never discounted Farah as being British. He also said he had unsuccessfully attempted to put forward his explanation to Farah’s management team.
Another stellar field against @Mo_Farah on home turf this weekend at Birmingham. #joke
— Andy Vernon (@AndyVernonGB) February 17, 2015
Lol @Mo_Farah I think even you can work out that I can make the cut to the Indoor Grand Prix. Lets hope no one loses their shoe...
— Andy Vernon (@AndyVernonGB) February 17, 2015
@Mo_Farah. 1) stop quoting Taylor Swift. 2) I don't hate you Mo. I would just rather watch a race than the the Mo Show. #playersgonnaplay
— Andy Vernon (@AndyVernonGB) February 17, 2015
@AndyVernonGB that's why they didn't put you in the race mate.. Cos you're an embarrassment!! Taylor swift can probably run faster than you!
— Mo Farah (@Mo_Farah) February 17, 2015
In the wake of the comments being made public, a British Athletics spokesperson confirmed they would be speaking to Vernon about them and “reminding him of his responsibilities as a British team member”.
The latest revelations will ensure the animosity between the pair is sure to continue after a week of insults and counter-insults.
The spat began on Tuesday when Vernon criticised the lack of competition Farah will face when he makes his seasonal bow at the Sainsbury’s Indoor Grand Prix in Birmingham on Saturday.
Farah then hit back, calling Vernon an “embarrassment” and saying he wished his rival was also competing in Birmingham so he could “leave you in my dust like ALWAYS!!”
Speaking to Telegraph Sport on Wednesday, Vernon said Farah’s comments were “arrogant” and he had been shocked by the personal nature of the insults.
Despite fueling the hostility between the pair by revealing the details of their private conversation in Zurich, Farah did admit he was sorry for how he initially reacted to Vernon's criticism on Twitter.
“I do apologise for the way I reacted and I shouldn’t have reacted that way,” he said.
“We do have some history in the past, me and Andy. He has said some not great things but in terms of making it public, that was never the right thing to do.
“My frustration just got the better of me, for sure.
“Someone like me should never have reacted. I put my hand up. But Andy has a history of disrespecting athletes.”
Last summer Vernon said he would apologise in person to British team-mate Lynsey Sharp after going on Twitter and criticising her reaction to winning a silver medal at the Commonwealth Games less than 24 hours after being on a hospital drip due to illness.
Discussing the difficulties of not responding to abuse on social network, Farah said: “You get a lot of stuff but that comes with Twitter. If you're not willing to accept things come with Twitter you never should sign up.
“You just have to deal with it and let your running do the talking.
“But with an athlete like [Vernon], one I've been on the podium with, it was difficult to bite my tongue.
“Probably the best thing to do at the time was to bite my tongue, but I couldn't do it.”
Farah is the headline act in Birmingham on Saturday where his main competition is expected to come from 40-year-old Olympic medallist Bernard Lagat as the Briton looks to break his own national two-mile record and Kenenisa Bekele’s world record.
Responding to Vernon’s claims that Farah “gets weaker fields put together for home races”, the double Olympic champion explained that he has “no control over races” and he has been training for a tough physical battle.
He also said the whole episode with Vernon had made him more eager to set a new record.
“It definitely has fired me up and I just want to be able to do what I do best, go out there, represent my country and continue to win medals,” he said.
“My aim is first to break the British record and then see what I can do after that.
“This year I am going to approach things slightly different and try to run a few good times as well as trying to win medals at the championships.
"I am definitely a lot stronger than what I was a few years ago in terms of how I'll start the season.”
How Farah v Vernon unfolded
Tuesday: Farah calls Vernon an “embarrassment” as the British team-mates trade insults for more than an hour on Twitter.
Wednesday: Vernon tells Telegraph Sport Farah’s comments were “arrogant” and insulting to other athletes.
Friday: Farah reveals the animosity dates back to accusations Vernon made last summer that the double Olympic champion was "not European".
Credit: BBC
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