Alistair Cragg advanced to Sunday's 3,000m final as an automatic qualifier at the IAAF World Championships in Moscow, Russia on Friday, 10th March. Kenyan Eliud Kipchoge, the 2003 World 5,000m Champion won the heat in 7.52.57 with Cragg finishing fourth in 7.53.74.

The Moscow crowd cheered loudly in the nearly empty, cavernous facility as a Russian, Pavel Naumov for the first mile in 4.19.2 before being passed by Kipchoge. Cragg had a sluggish start passing 400 metres in 65. Cragg, 25, in eighth place covered the opening kilometre in 2.43.9 The Irish record holder (7.38.59) easily moved through the field to hit the mile mark in 4.19.9 in third position. Cragg oscillated during the race from ninth to fourth back to eighth and then at the front of the lead pack at 1,800m.

Cragg looked to be in control as he passed the 2-kilometre mark in fourth place in 5.23.3 but a few metres later as he entered the bend just after the finishing line, he was clipped in the heel and stumbled. Somehow he managed to keep from falling but lost valuable time and places. The Irish Olympian now trailed nine runners but never panicked. He systematically picked off a runner after runner and by the penultimate lap Cragg was in sixth place. Competing in the first of three qualifiers coupled with a relatively slow pace, Cragg wisely went for the guaranteed fourth place finish to advance to Sunday's final. Cragg passed Halil Akkas of Turkey and was in fifth with a lap to go. Cragg covered the last 400 metres in a dazzling 57 seconds pipping Günther Weidlinger at the line by .09 seconds.

It was Cragg's first 3k of the indoor season. He dropped out of the 3,000m at the Tyson Invitational on 10th February. Cragg, the reigning European 3k Gold Medallist ran 8.27.39 in a tactical 2-mile race at the Boston Indoor Games on 29th January. Despite the inconsistent season, Cragg, 25, has the fastest mile time in the world this year with his 3.55.04 which he ran on 21st January at the Razorback Invitational in Fayetteville, Arkansas. With the likes of multiple World Champion and World Record holder Kenenisa Bekele (Ethiopia), two-time World steeplechase champion Saif Saaeed Shaheen (Qatar) and the aforementioned Kipchoge, Cragg will not be considered a favourite and may be able unleash his potent kick and take a medal. Bekele commented on the final, "Sunday won't be a race for a fast time, but it will be a race for a medal."

Complete Results for the 2006 IAAF World Indoor Championships