British long-distance runner Mohamed Farah has revealed for the first time in a BBC documentary that he is living under a fake name.

"The truth is, I'm not who you think I am," the four-time Olympic track and field champion said in pre-release excerpts of the show, titled The Real Mo Farah.

The 39-year-old from Somalia stated that he was born Hussein Abdi Kahin in a region that has since become largely independent as Somaliland.

Contrary to what he previously stated, Farah said his parents never lived in the UK.

Work around the house in exchange for food

Instead, his father died in the civil war and he was separated from his mother.

He says he was then smuggled into the UK via the East African country of Djibouti when he was nine by a woman he had never met before.

"I was brought to the UK illegally under the name of a child other than Mohamed Farah," he said.

After his arrival in the UK, the woman took him to her home in Hounslow, west London, and tore up a piece of paper with his relatives' contact details.

It is said that her family did not allow him to go to school until the age of twelve.

He is also said to have been forced to do housework and childcare for Essen.

"Often I just locked myself in the bathroom and cried.

The only thing I could do to get out of this situation was go out and run," Farah said.

Interior Ministry does not want to take any action

However, his physical education teacher then contacted social services and helped him find foster care in the Somali community after Farah told him what he had been through.

"What really saved me, what set me apart, was that I could walk."

Farah said the fact that he was now going public was inspired by his own children.

“Family means everything to me and as a parent you teach your children to be honest.

But I always felt that I always had this secret, that I could never be myself and tell what really happened.” It is now important for him to be able to tell the truth, Farah continues.

The athlete knows nothing about the fate of the real Mohamed Farah.

He hopes he is doing well, he added.

A lawyer warns Farah in the documentary that he could lose his British citizenship as a result of the revelation.

But according to the British news agency PA, the Home Office in London has already indicated that he has nothing to fear.

This Tuesday, an official spokesman for the Home Office said: "No action will be taken against Sir Mo and it is wrong to claim otherwise".