Mo Farah slams Donald Trump's Muslim ban: 'I will have to tell my children that daddy might not be able to come home'

'President Donald Trump seems to have made me an alien'
Four-time Olympic champ Mo Farah may be blocked from re-entering the US, where he lives.
AFP/Getty Images
Francesca Gillett29 January 2017

Star Olympian Mo Farah has slammed Donald Trump’s divisive travel ban and said the president “seems to have made me an alien”.

The Somalia-born four-time Olympic champion, who has a London-born dad and grew up in the UK before moving to the US, said it was “deeply troubling I will have to tell my children that daddy might not be able to come home”.

Sir Mo is likely to be affected by the ban, which blocks those from Muslim-majority countries Iraq, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen from entering the US. The controversial policy could affect UK citizens born abroad.

In a statement on Sunday, London 2012 hero Sir Mo said: "On 1st January this year, Her Majesty The Queen made me a Knight of the Realm.

“On 27th January, President Donald Trump seems to have made me an alien.

"I am a British citizen who has lived in America for the past six years - working hard, contributing to society, paying my taxes and bringing up our four children in the place they now call home.

London 2012's Team GB hero Mo Farah with daughter Rhianna and wife Tania.
AFP/Getty Images

"Now, me and many others like me are being told that we may not be welcome."

Sir Mo, who went to school in Isleworth, London, added: "It's deeply troubling that I will have to tell my children that daddy might not be able to come home - to explain why the president has introduced a policy that comes from a place of ignorance and prejudice.

"I was welcomed into Britain from Somalia at eight years old and given the chance to succeed and realise my dreams.

"I have been proud to represent my country, win medals for the British people and receive the greatest honour of a knighthood.

"My story is an example of what can happen when you follow polices of compassion and understanding, not hate and isolation."

Sir Mo with his daughter, Rihanna, who he lives with in the family home in the US.
Getty Images

Sir Mo's statement comes as more than 100,000 people signed a petition urging the government to stop Donald Trump's state visit to the UK.

It joins a wave of protests at airports across the US in response to the policy, which has put an indefinite ban on refugees coming from Syria and a 90-day ban on refugees coming from six other Muslim-majority countries.

The star Olympian has hit out at Donald Trump's ban.
ADRIAN DENNIS/AFP/Getty Images

Sir Mo trains in Portland, Oregon, where he lives with his wife Tania and their four children.

He moved to the UK from Somalia - one of the proscribed countries - when he was eight, becoming a British citizen and growing up in London. His dad, an IT consultant, was born in London and grew up in Hounslow.

Even though he is a British passport holder and does not have either dual nationality or hold a Somalian passport, Sir Mo could be included in President Trump's ban.

Sir Mo is currently training in Ethiopia and his team are unsure how and if he will be affected by the travel ban.

A representative said: "We are seeking to clarify the situation with the US authorities. Mo is currently at a training camp and is not planned to return to the US for a number of weeks.

"However, as I'm sure you can appreciate, he and Tania want to understand the direct impact on them (if any) as a matter of urgency."

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