SIR Mo Farah made history today at an emotional Great North Run.

The four-time Olympic champion won his fourth Great North Run in a row, seeing off the challenge of New Zealand’s Jake Robertson to win the men’s race in a time of one hour and six seconds.

But despite his second place finish, the Kiwi still managed to upstage Sir Mo when he proposed to Kenyan girlfriend Magdalyne Masai, who had just finished fourth in the women’s race.

After a spontaneous proposal at the finishing line, Robertson told the media “In the last mile it just randomly came to my mind that today was the day.”

And County Durham scientist Laura Cort and American partner Christina Ritcher went one better. The couple, who got engaged at the end of last year’s Great North Run, returned with family and friends to get married at the end of the half marathon course.

The romantic moment capped an emotionally-charged day, which had started with a spontaneous minute’s applause in memory of TV presenter Mike Neville, who died last week at the age of 80.

The Look North presenter was official starter at the first Great North Run back in 1981.

Race founder Brendan Foster said: “It was fantastic – people don’t realise that the first Great North Run was just an idea until Mike Neville said to me ‘we will help you make that happen’.

Thousands of runners took to the streets of Tyneside for the 37th Simplyhealth Great North Run, with thousands more spectators cheering them on every step of the way.

Following his historic victory in the men’s race, Sir Mo said: "That was really, really tough. I'm sore everywhere - I've never been this sore.

“With four miles to go I was just hanging on, gritting my teeth.
"

As we got closer, I managed to believe in myself and dig”.

The athletics legend, who this year called time on his glittering track career, added: "I'm so pleased with how the season has gone. I'll go on a little holiday with the missus and then come back fresh.

“I'm looking forward to sticky toffee pudding and apple pie!"

Kenya's Mary Keitany won the elite women's with the third fastest time in its history.

Cumbrian Simon Lawson took the elite men's wheelchair race with a time of 44 minutes and 22 seconds, while Switzerland's Manuela Schar set a course record winning the elite women's wheelchair race in 48 minutes and 44 seconds.

But it was the 55,000 fun runners, who turned Tyneside street’s into a colourful spectacle as they raised money for countless good causes, who were the real stars of the show.

Brendan Foster, who earlier this year announced his retirement as a BBC sports commentator, fired the starting gun to set athletes on their way in the world’s biggest half marathon.

Speaking as runners lined up at the start of the 13.1-mile route from Newcastle to South Shields, he said: “It’s great, great atmosphere, ordinary people doing extraordinary things. I’ve never been at the start: I’ve run in it, I’ve commentated on it, but I’ve never started it, so this is a first.

“We organise this thing and we do it as best we can, but at the end of the day it’s the people who make it”.