(CNN) Two Olympic track and field greats -- Mo Farah and Haile Gebrselassie -- have become embroiled in a spat after the Briton alleged he had been robbed during a stay in the Ethiopian Olympic gold medalist's hotel in Addis Ababa in March 2019.

During an April 24 news conference ahead of Sunday's London Marathon, Farah told reporters money and a watch were stolen from a hotel room in Yaya Village, an athletic training center in the Ethiopian capital.

Four-time Olympic champion Farah, who finished third in the London Marathon last year, had been staying at the hotel in March as part of his final preparations for his home race.

"The robbery happened on my birthday, when I went for an early morning Sunday run," the 36-year-old Farah told reporters.

"We left at 5.30 a.m. with my coach and training partners and I gave my key to reception so they could clean. When I came back about 4.30 p.m. I noticed my bag was open. I was like: 'Sh*t, I left my bag open.' But I then saw it was locked and had been broken into," Farah said at the London news conference, in comments widely reported by leading UK media.

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