O'Rourke ready to make big leap in Gothenburg

ATHLETICS/World Indoor Championships review: Ian O'Riordan talks to Derval O'Rourke and Alistair Cragg who now focus on the European Championships

Even with the first thaw of another inhospitable Russian winter hitting Moscow yesterday any talk of a summer track and field championships seemed well out of place. But Gothenburg in August is the next focus for Derval O'Rourke and Alistair Cragg, who both left here yesterday knowing the World Indoor championships are still only a stepping-stone to their ultimate goal of the year.

Even with a gold medal in her bag, from the only global track championships of the year, O'Rourke was already looking ahead to Gothenburg, where the European Championships will provide the ideal chance to confirm her status as one of the best sprint hurdlers around.

Her outdoor best for the 100 metre hurdles stands at 12.96 seconds - set in 2003 at the European Under-23 Championships in Poland, where she finished fourth. Her 7.84 second run over the 60 metres hurdles when winning the gold medal here roughly translates to a 12.6 clocking over the 100 metres hurdles, and that sort of time would definitely put her in contention for a second major championship medal of the year.

"I always had a real outdoor focus of this year," she explained. "I want to run a huge best outdoors now, and try to get a medal at the European Championships. But it's one thing at a time. I need to be careful with my health and stay away from injuries. That's so important as well."

Her improved hurdling technique, which ultimately explained her extraordinary breakthrough over the weekend, practically ensures the transition to the longer race will be seamless. Her speed was always her strength in that O'Rourke could always run as fast or even faster than the other athletes between the hurdles.

The success of Moscow has also taken a lot of the pressure off the shoulders of the 24-year-old, and especially in the financial sense. Her Sports Council grant was cut to €12,000 this year - although there is a 25 per cent bonus for any medal run - but it's the $40,000 prize money from Moscow that helped widen the smile on her face.

"I have been struggling a bit with the money, and constantly borrowing money off my dad. So I'll have to pay him back a bit. But hopefully I'll have little more financial security. People think the hardest thing about athletics is the training, but I think the hardest part is paying the bills. That's where all Irish athletes are struggling."

She has a part-time job in the DCU sports centre to help support herself, and there's no chance of giving that up just yet: "DCU sports have been so good: I was looking for a job with ridiculous flexibility, and they gave me that. So I'll definitely keep on working . . . So there won't be any huge changes in my life, not when everything is working out the way it is."

What she does hope her success in Moscow will help change is some of the enduring attitudes towards Irish athletics. Starting with the false notion our facilities are fast improving. Yet again Ireland has come away from an indoor championships with a gold medal, despite the fact we don't have a proper indoor running track.

"Hopefully we'll get an indoor stadium now. I depend on the small strip of indoor track at Santry, and have to do most of my hurdle work outdoors. I also hope people will realise now that we can compete at a world level, even in sprinting. This sport gets so much negative publicity, with people always saying we don't do well. I came home from Athens Olympic and heard what people were saying, and that dragged me way down. Maybe people will sit back and give us the proper support now."

Of course O'Rourke knows that indoor success doesn't automatically transfer to the outdoors, and she pointed out herself that the other two medallists on the podium with her were European.

Cragg, however, could take some comfort from his fourth-place finish over 3,000 metres with the knowledge the three runners ahead of him aren't only the world's best, but more importantly won't be in Gothenburg. Kenenisa Bekele (Ethiopia), Saif Shaheen (Qatar) and Eliud Kipchoge (Kenya) will be chasing world records this summer, rather than any more titles, and that should help Cragg win the outdoor title he so desperately wants.

As long as he stays injury free, Cragg will go into the European Championships as the favourite, and before departing Moscow yesterday he hinted at a possible double over 5,000 and 10,000 metres. First he wants to run under 13 minutes for 5,000 metres, which will confirm his place among the world's best.

"A lot of people have been worrying about me recently," he said, "and I wanted them to show them by coming here that I was coming back to my best. But when you're injured you forget how to race, and I've got that back after Moscow. I also learn about those guys, Bekele and Shaheen, every time I match up against them. With a little more strength I think I can run with them. I respect them, but I know I can beat them some day. I know in my heart I can do it."

With just over four and a half months now until Gothenburg, both O'Rourke and Cragg are exactly where they want to be. But David Gillick, James Nolan and David McCarthy also left yesterday knowing the Moscow experience will definitely stand to them when the hunt for major championship medals moves to Europe.