You're right about Farman, but not about all previous flights - the Wrights flew their Flyer II in a 360 circle for the first time in 1904, and had flights up to nearly 5 kilometers. In 1905, Wilbur flew the Flyer III for more than half an hour, circling over Huffman Prairie and covering something like 38 kilometers.
Farman's flight was recognized because he had (or allowed) two things the Wrights' didn't: Publicity, and a predetermined course. It didn't help that the European press routinely called the Wrights liars at the time...