Olympic 5,000 and 10,000-metre champion Mo Farah spoke on Sunday (July 24) about his preparations for Rio, his pride at representing Team GB, and his sympathy for clean Russian athletes who will miss the Games.

SOUNDBITE: (English) Mo Farah, Team GB (on the situation with Russia possibly being banned from Rio 2016 for doping):

"It's pretty tough. It is pretty hard - but at the same time you just have to let the authorities do what they can do and ourselves to just concentrate on what we are doing. Yeah, I don't really know what to say to be honest with you. Olympics is every athletes dream and my dream, you know to take part and do as well as I can. You know, London was amazing."

SOUNDBITE: (English) Mo Farah, Team GB:

"Yeah I do feel sorry (for some Russian athletes). I didn't think anyone should be put in that position in terms of, if you are a clean athlete and honest with yourself and as honest as you can it is hard. it's hard, it's difficult. But at the same time if a country has done some thing wrong then...I don't know. I do genuinely feel sorry for the clean athletes but there is a lot of athletes who have crossed the line."

SOUNDBITE: (English) Mo Farah, Team GB:

"I don't know. Everything is difficult, mate. It's difficult. I am not in their shoes so it is hard for me to think what they are going through and what they have done. I don't know the ins and outs. I have been up in the mountains and training hard and just trying to defend my two titles. That is what I wanted to do and I want to do. At the same time you can't ignore the reality. It is the reality what is happening. So we just have to leave it to the right authorities and see what they can do. No one wants to see a bad thing in their sport because I love what I do and there is a lot of kids out there who look up to us and look up to me and them kids - we don't want to show them what has happened in our sport."

SOUNDBITE: (English) Mo Farah, Team GB (on defending 5,000 and 10,000m titles):

"It would mean a lot to me. It is something that has never been done before. I get nervous talking about and get emotional because London was huge for me. London was amazing. This track was incredible. Now four years later I am trying to defend my title. It is quite nerve-wracking. At the same time, training has been going quite well and I am happy where I am and the last two weeks...two and a half weeks...I just have to stay injury-free, stay focused and keep doing what I am doing."

SOUNDBITE: (English) Mo Farah, Team GB:

"Yeah it does give me age over four years and I am a better athlete but at the same time most people in most countries had four years to prepare. They showed me what they did four years ago and they have had four years to prepare to try and beat me. So that is harder than knowing it is the first time that you are going to win and you win it. that's it. No, I have had four years with a target on my back."

SOUNDBITE: (English) Mo Farah, Team GB:

"It feels amazing, I have always said that. it is incredible being able to put your Great Britain vests on and run. I remember the first time ever I put on a Great Britain vest on, I was a youngster. I remember one time I got interviewed and it was like 'what do you want to do' and I was a kid. I was only like 15 and at that time I remember saying that I wanted to run for Great Britain. The first time I run was the World under-18 and it was my proudest moment and then again, putting on a senior vest - that was another part because as a junior you don't know if you are going to make it to the senior ranks - which I did. So I am always proud to put my Union Jack on."

SOUNDBITE: (English) Mo Farah, Team GB:

"Yeah I have a lot and all the kids out there, you have to tell them the truth. I tell them how far I have come a long in terms of when I was a kid until now. It has taken me years and I am 33 years-old and all them years have been hard with the preparation and working hard and grafting and just getting stronger each year and trying to learn. We have got to tell the kids you know, 'you can do it, you can do it' - you just have to patient and believe in yourself and love what you do. I think as we get older you realise what you can do and can't do."

SOUNDBITE: (English) Mo Farah, Team GB (on the threat of the Kenyans in Rio):

"Yeah, all eyes on me (laughs). A lot of people will be looking at that results and see what I am doing and I am sure they have sat around and watched that race (5000-metre win at the Anniversary Games) and are thinking 'How do we do it?' and 'What do we need to do?' There is a lot of talk about how they are going to come like an army and tray and throw me off my game."

SOUNDBITE: (English) Mo Farah, Team GB (on doping in athletics and Russia IOC verdict):

"Yeah for sure. we have to send out something and at the same time, as I said, as a country if we do something then it should apply the same thing. I have always said that but at the same time I do genuinely feel sorry for the young...people who haven't done anything but as a country it gets put in with the whole thing. So, we just have to let the authorities do what they can and in myself I just have to get out of here and concentrate on my race. I have only got two and a half weeks."