Credit: Reuters/Sergio Perez
BARCELONA |
BARCELONA (Reuters) - Britain's Mo Farah is going for a distance-running double at the European championships on Saturday when he bids to add the 5,000 metres gold to the 10,000 title he claimed on Tuesday.
Britain's Mo Farah (C) crosses the finish line ahead of Spain's Jesus Espana (L), Ukraine's Serhiy Lebid (2nd L), Italy's Stefano La Rosa (2nd R) and Spain's Sergio Sanchez during their men's 5000 metres heats at the European Athletics Championships in Barcelona July 29, 2010.
The 27-year-old Somali-born athlete's main rival is likely to be local favourite Jesus Espana of Spain, in a re-run of the final at the 2006 edition when Farah had to settle for silver and Espana took gold.
In the heptathlon, Farah's British team mate Jessica Ennis is in a strong position to add the continental title to her gold at the world championships in Berlin last year.
The 24-year-old has a 110-point advantage over Ukraine's Nataliya Dobrynska with three of eight events left.
"I'll just keep my fingers crossed," she added ahead of Saturday's long jump, javelin and 800 metres.
The day begins with the women's marathon at 0905 a.m. BST, which this year ends in the centre of the Catalan capital instead of the traditional stadium finish.
In the men's events, there are finals in the pole vault (1600), shot put (1630), 800 metres (1735), javelin (1805) and 400 metres hurdles (1810).
The other women's finals are the triple jump (1710), 200 metres (1750) and 100 metres hurdles (1825).
(Reporting by Alice Tozer, editing by Ken Ferris)