Mo Farah’s brilliant British 5000m record stood proudly for 11 long years, seemingly invincible, until Thursday night.
Farah’s mark of 12:53:11 had been untouchable for more than a decade until 26-year-old Yorkshireman George Mills obliterated it at the Diamond League meeting at Norway’s iconic Bislett Stadium.
Mills finished second to US star Nico Young on the night, but that was only part of the story as his time stunned British fans and took more than six seconds off Farah’s long-standing mark.
George, son of former Premier League and England football star Danny Mills, stopped the clock at 12:46:59 – a quite astonishing performance. For context, it was 12 seconds faster than he had ever run before.
George Mills on new 5000m record
Speaking straight after the race, he told the BBC: “The national record was definitely one of the things I came for.
“The race was stacked and billed as a world record attempt, so to be in the mix was important. My target for the season is a global medal and this shows I am in the right space.”
Young’s winning time of 12:45:27 was almost a full 10 seconds off the current world record set by Joshua Cheptegei in 2020, but it was Mills who was really celebrating after a momentous achievement.
After having time to allow the magnitude of that achievement to sink in, he wrote on Instagram: “British 5000m Record. 2nd All Time European. Big moment, building momentum.
“Couldn’t do it without my team, family and friends, so much work has gone into this from so many people, cannot thank them enough.
“We will keep building – many more goals to accomplish.”
