HOLYROOD Park will be a no-Mo area tomorrow - a huge disappointment to Scottish fans of the double Olympic and World 5000 and 10,000 metres champion.

Farah's withdrawal from the BUPA Great Edinburgh Cross-country is his third defection from a race on Scottish soil in less than six months.

First there was the Diamond League at Hampden in July, when he planned to run two miles. Then there was the Commonwealth Games, when he withdrew on the first day of competition. And now tomorrow's Edinburgh race. Along the way he ducked London's Anniversary Games, prompting condemnation in his own backyard.

There was all manner of criticism, not to mention libelous comment on blogs and websites. I share the disappointment of the sport's enthusiasts. Farah's deceptively languid style and electrifying change-of-pace is a joy to watch; his mastery of pace-judgement and tactics is text-book; his execution majestic. Only an athlete of Farah's confidence and talent can afford to hang around, off the pace, avoiding trouble at the rear, as he often does. It's exciting to witness, even if coaches would hesitate to commend this facet as a shining example to young athletes. Mo has so much in his armoury that he will continue to get away with this until some young blood gets the jump on him from the front.

Farah boasts something further, however: a reputation which intimidates opponents. Rivals are at a loss to know how to combat him. Who will dare try to run the legs off him, in the faint hope of negating that electrifying finish? And as so often happens, despite knowing they will lose in a sprint, the pace becomes pedestrian, and plays into the hands of the fastest finisher: Farah. Witness, for example the 14:05.82 with which he won European 5000m gold in Zurich last year - a time so modest that it has been beaten 39 times since the Scottish championships went metric in 1969 (but never in the past 25 years!!).

This title was easily come by because nobody dared push the race at a pace which might damage Farah.

The surest way to defuse the fear factor is to beat a rival. And this is why nobody should blame Farah for opting out of races when he is less than 100% fit.

As Olympic and World champion he has nothing to prove, but laying his reputation on the line when not fully fit makes it easier for rivals to beat him in future: "I've done it once, so I can do it again."

If defeated, Farah also risks planting seeds of doubt in his own head. Indeed, they may already be there. He is 'way down the 2014 world rankings in terms of fastest times: 66th at both 5000 and 10,000m. This in no way reflects his ability, but it will encourage rivals to consider that his aura has slipped. The last thing Farah needs is to come back and get beaten as he prepares to defend his World 5000 and 10,000m titles in Beijing this summer.

Truth is, Farah is less than outstanding over the country. His last cross-country outing was three years ago this weekend, when he won the corresponding Edinburgh event. The field seemed massaged to make it possible: devoid of Kenyan or Ethiopian presence. Just as it had been this year.

Farah has an individual European cross-country gold (2006) but has contested the World cross only twice (21st, and tenth). Yet Farah said just two months ago that his coach, Alberto Salazar, sets great store by cross-country. Really? If Farah was going to enhance his reputation (and bank balance) by doing cross-country without undermining his aura of invincibility, he would assuredly be doing it.

Some admiringly cite Kenya's Olympic champion and 800m world record-holder, David Rudisha, knowing that Nijel Amos had his measure, but still putting his reputation on the line at Hampden. Or Scotland's European and Commonwealth 800m silver medallist Lynsey Sharp, comparing Farah's attitude unfavourably with hers: on a drip until less than 18 hours before she won Commonwealth silver. While I have the greatest regard for the Edinburgh 800 metres runner, there is little comparison. Sharp's cv does not have double World and Olympic titles thereon - but if it ever does, I expect her management team to be as protective as Farah's has been.

I am minded of Steve Cram, at the peak of his powers, being persuaded against his better judgement to run the 1500m at the 1987 European Cup final. He surprisingly lost to the Spaniard, Jose-Luis Gonzales, and was never quite the same force again.

I do not believe Farah merits a reputation for shirking challenges. Two weeks after the Commonwealths he took double European gold - though assuredly a softer touch than the Commonwealths.

His troubles began when he had an infected tooth extracted at his US training base. He collapsed on the bathroom floor after his next training run and had to use his mobile to summon help. He was air-lifted to hospital and later reported: "They thought something was going on with my heart - it was just crazy. I was in hospital for four days."

Withdrawal from the Diamond League and Commonwealth Games followed soon after, and Farah had to endure criticism from no less than Paula Radcliffe. The world marathon record-holder accused him of taking: "the easy option" despite having seen him struggle in training.

His reaction is a clue to subsequent thinking about racing when less than fully fit. "I'm not going to turn up in my home country and get beaten," he said. "A lot of those Kenyan guys, I can beat when I'm 100%, but if I'm 80 or 90%, I'm just asking to get beaten."

The year just ended may yet prove to be the last hurrah of Mo Farah. Similar considerations surround sprinter Usain Bolt. I don't think either will disappear without a fight. But both will be under more intense scrutiny. Races Mo has ducked will encourage rivals to question his invincibility.