Mo Farah will have a chance to clinch a spectacular double in track and field after he comfortably qualified for the men's 5,000 meters in the first round on Wednesday. Farah won the 10,000 meters in dramatic fashion in front of a raucous home crowd at the Olympic Stadium, and will be one of the favorites in the 5,000 meter final, as he's the current reigning world champion in the event.
Galen Rupp, Farah's training partner and the silver medalist in the 10,000 meters, also qualified for the final. Farah, Rupp and American Bernard Lagat, who finished second at the World Championships in 2009 and 2011, all finished in the middle of the pack of qualifying runners and were almost certainly saving something for the final. Hayle Ibrahimov of Azerbaijan won the first heat, which featured Farah and had a slower pace than the second heat. Dejen Gebremeskel of Ethiopa, who won bronze at the World Championships, won the second heat with Rupp and Lagat.
The third member of Team USA, Lopez Lamong, a South Sudanese-born American and one of "Lost Boys of Sudan," also qualified for the final, running a 13:26.16. No American has medaled in the 5000m since 1964, when the U.S. took home gold and bronze.
The final of the men's 5000m is Friday at 2:30 p.m. ET.
For more on the Olympics, check out SB Nation's London 2012 Olympics hub.
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