MO FARAH would have packed in athletics years ago if not for the support of those around him during an injury struggle as a youngster.

In the event, the former Hounslow schoolboy went on to become the world's best middle distance runner after scooping gold in both the 5,000m and 10,000m at this summer's London Olympics.

But Farah revealed during a tour of his old school, Feltham Community College, last Monday that it could all easily have been so different.

He said: “There were times I thought about giving it up. As a junior I got a stress fracture in both of my pelvis and missed a lot of training, and it was hard getting back into it. But I got good advice from my coaches and PE teachers, and from my friends and family. They told me not to give up, and I'm glad they did.

“Another low point was when I came second in Daegu (in the 2011 World Championships 10,000m final). It came down to a split second, and I was so disappointed. I got my tactics wrong, going too early and losing my energy.”

However, in winning silver, Farah still became the first British male to land a 10,000m medal at a World Championships, and had the consolation of scooping 5,000m gold too.

But it was on the biggest stage of all that Farah finally landed his dream double, and he put it all down to the hard graft which started way back as a pupil at Feltham.

He said: “I believe in life, if you want something, you can achieve it through hard work. I could be sitting at home now happy with my Olympic medals, but I want to be somebody special. That's why I'm still out there running 100-120 miles a week, 16 -17 miles a day. I want to win races, so you can't miss a day here and there.

“Whenever the going gets tough during a race, all I think about is the hard work I have put into training and the time I spent away from my family – which will be even harder now I have two little girls – and it drives me to make sure it's all worth it.”