Mo Farah has put a disruptive build-up to the side to successfully defend his 10,000 metres crown in thrilling style at the world athletics championships in Beijing.

Olympic champion Farah won a sprint finish to beat home Kenyan Geoffrey Kamworor 27:01.13 to 27:01.76, his victory coming in a season in which his coach, Alberto Salazar, has been the centre of doping allegations.

Meanwhile, Usain Bolt and Justin Gatlin both advanced to the semi-finals of the men’s 100 metres after taking out their heats in 9.96 (-0.2 metre per second wind) and 9.83 (+2.1) respectively.

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Farah, who won both the 10,000m and 5,000m at the Moscow world titles in 2013, has endured a testing year with Salazar having been accused in the British and American media of being involved with doping in his role as a coach.

Salazar has denied the accusations but they took their toll on Farah, who withdrew from the Birmingham Diamond League in June saying he was “emotionally and physically drained”.

Farah showed his class on Saturday evening with another sound tactical display, as he was happy to run his own race and leave the Kenyans Kamworor, Paul Tanui and Bedan Karoki to set the pace.

The 32-year-old Briton had positioned himself towards the back of the field in the early stages but eventually worked his way up to join the Kenyan trio and his American training partner Galen Rupp in a breakaway group of five.

Farah made his move to the front of the group with 500 metres remaining before almost being knocked to the ground after a minor collision early in the last lap, but he kept his feet and proceeded to take on Kamworor and Tanui in the back straight.

The two Kenyans launched more than one attack in the final 250 metres, but Farah kicked at the right moment to clinch his fourth world championships gold medal.

Tanui claimed the bronze in 27:02.83.

Bolt, Gatlin do their thing in the dash

Bolt and Gatlin seemed intent on adopting different approaches in their maiden appearances of the world titles, with the American wanting to issue a statement with a strong heat run, albeit wind assisted.

He carries a world-leading 9.74 into Beijing, which is also his personal best, and has recorded the four fastest times of the season, but a victory in Sunday evening’s final would prove unpopular among a large portion of the track and field community.

Gatlin’s two doping suspensions do not sit well with many and he has been forced to take on the role of the ‘villain’ to Bolt’s ‘hero’ in the Chinese capital.

Bolt has not enjoyed the pre-Olympic season he would have been hoping for ahead of the Rio de Janeiro Games, although he can take a degree of confidence from the fact his season’s best of 9.87 from London last month was run into a sizeable enough headwind (-1.2).

He effectively strolled over the finish line in Beijing – the scene of his 100m and 200m world records in winning gold at the 2008 Olympics – to claim his heat ahead of American Mike Rodgers, who also easily progressed with a time of 9.97.

Rodgers’s team-mate, 20-year-old Trayvon Bromell, was perhaps the most impressive of the heat winners, slowing down to record 9.91, just 0.07 outside his PB.

France’s Jimmy Vicaut (9.92) and Jamaican Asafa Powell (9.95) were among the others to dip under 10 seconds in the heats.

In other events, Germany’s Christina Schwanitz was victorious in the women’s shot put with a best effort of 20.37m.

Gong Lijiao (20.30m) delivered China’s its first medal of the meet with silver and American Michelle Carter (19.76m) rounded out the podium.

Jessica Ennis-Hill, the 2012 Olympic champion, leads the standings following day one of the heptathlon.

Ennis-Hill, who did not compete at the Moscow world titles two years ago, sits on top with 4,005 points with her British countrywoman Katarina Johnson-Thompson in second place on 3,925.

And Kenya’s Nicholas Bett topped qualifying for the men’s 400m hurdles with a classy 48.37 win in the opening round of heats.