The ‘real’ Mo Farah, whose identity was given to the future Olympic hero as a child, has been forced to undergo a DNA test to prove his identity, the Daily Mail can reveal.
Mohamed Farah, 42, was granted a visa to come to Britain from Somalia in 1993 but it was instead given to a boy called Hussein Abdi Kahin – the future Sir Mo Farah.
In a world-exclusive interview, Mohamed detailed how this left him an effective orphan in Africa, unable to join his parents in Britain.
He was forced to watch on in abject poverty in Nairobi, Kenya, as the boy who took his name went on to become Britain’s most decorated runner and was knighted by the Queen.
Mohamed has been fighting to be reunited with his family after the Olympic gold-medallist finally revealed the mix-up in an astonishing 2022 documentary.
Sir Mo, 42, has written a letter supporting Mohamed’s bid to come to Britain, explored in the powerful Daily Mail podcast series and video documentary – The Other Mo Farah.
But because his birth certificate was lost in the Somali civil war before his name was given to the Olympic legend, Mohamed had to prove his identity to Home Office officials.
With no official paperwork, he was advised to undergo a DNA test which shows with 99.99 percent certainty that he is the ‘real’ Mo Farah.
The ‘real’ Mo Farah pictured with his mother Leyla Geedi for the first time since his childhood in 1995
The future Sir Mo Farah at Feltham Community School in West London, aged around 11-years-old
Today the Daily Mail can reveal that his father is Muktar Farah – the man who took Sir Mo in as a child in Britain and is mentioned in his autobiography.
Mohamed said: ‘I am happy that this proves what I have always said – I am the real Mo Farah. I was shocked that my lawyer said I needed to take a DNA test because I know these are my parents.
‘I didn’t feel comfortable because everyone knows I am Mohamed Farah and I didn’t think I had to prove it.
‘A DNA test wasn’t done when my identity was given to another person so I was confused why it was needed now.
‘Now the DNA test proves I am who I say I am and I hope it will help my application to come to London and be with my family.’
It will form a crucial part of evidence as Mohamed makes a direct appeal to Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood to right the historic wrong.
Jacqueline McKenzie, a partner at Leigh Day law firm who is leading his case, said: ‘Getting the DNA test was important in a case like this.
‘Though Sir Mo Farah has himself admitted that there is another person who is called Mohamed Farah, DNA testing has now proved that.’
Sir Mo shocked the sporting world with his 2022 admission that he was taken to the UK as a child under another boy’s name.
His Bafta-winning documentary, The Real Mo Farah, was praised for its bravery as the British hero, who has won four gold medals, revealed he had been forced to construct a false biography.
Sir Mo was only four when his father Abdi was killed in the Somali civil war and his mother Aisha sent him and his twin brother, Hassan, to live with relatives in Djibouti.
But their neighbour, Nimco Ateye, then took him away from his sibling in the dead of night, told him to take on the name Mohamed Farah and took him to Britain.
He claimed he was kept in domestic servitude before his prowess on the track saw him rise to greatness.
You can listen to the podcast series The Other Mo Farah wherever you get your podcasts or watch the accompanying video documentary on YouTube.
