Following his spectacular 10,000-meter win in London, and ahead of his final 5,000-meter race, Mo Farah has revealed one element of the next stage of his career: he will pass the torch to the next generation of runners as a global ambassador for Marathon Kids.
Marathon Kids, Nike’s community running partner, helps children unlock their potential one lap at a time, one day at a time. In the Marathon Kids program, kids work at their own pace to run or walk the equivalent of up to four marathons at school, at running clubs or with their families.
Nike and Marathon Kids joined forces in the US in 2015, and have since grown the program’s footprint from three US states to all 50, with more than 350,000 Marathon Kids. The program expanded to the UK this academic year, with more than 20,000 kids already running.
Yesterday, Farah joined 30 children from Hitherfield Primary School in Streatham, London, to celebrate their achievements — each has run the equivalent of at least one marathon over the past school year.
“Mo is one of the greatest runners of all time,” says Ray Blue, Chief Development Officer for Marathon Kids. “To have him join our team as a Marathon Kids ambassador is a dream come true. He’s a hero to kids around the world, and we know he will inspire many more kids to start their running journeys.”