# 2012 IAAF World Indoor Championships – Women's 3000 metres

The women's 3000 metres at the 2012 IAAF World Indoor Championships will be held at the Ataköy Athletics Arena on 9 and 11 March.

## Medalists

| Gold | Silver | Bronze |
| Hellen Onsando Obiri Kenya | Meseret Defar Ethiopia | Gelete Burka Ethiopia |

## Records

Standing records prior to the 2012 IAAF World Indoor Championships :
| World record | Meseret Defar (ETH) | 8:23.72 | Stuttgart, Germany | 3 February 2007 |
| Championship record | Elly van Hulst (NED) | 8:33.82 | Budapest, Hungary | 4 March 1989 |
| World Leading | Meseret Defar (ETH) | 8:31.56 | Birmingham, Great Britain | 18 February 2012 |
| African record | Meseret Defar (ETH) | 8:23.72 | Stuttgart, Germany | 3 February 2007 |
| Asian record | Dong Yanmei (CHN) | 8:41.34 | Lisbon, Portugal | 10 March 2001 |
| European record | Liliya Shobukhova (RUS) | 8:27.86 | Moscow, Russia | 17 February 2006 |
| North and Central American and Caribbean record | Shalane Flanagan (USA) | 8:33.25 | Boston, United States | 27 January 2007 |
| Oceanian Record | Kim Smith (NZL) | 8:38.14 | Boston, United States | 27 January 2007 |
| South American record | Letitia Vriesde (SUR) | 9:07.08 | The Hague, Netherlands | 31 January 1993 |

## Qualification standards

| Indoor | Outdoor |
| 9:02.00 | 8:38.00 or 15:00.00 (5000 m) |

## Schedule

| Date | Time | Round |
| March 9, 2012 | 10:45 | Heats |
| March 11, 2012 | 15:50 | Final |

## Results
### Heats

Qualification: first 4 of each heat (Q) plus the 4 fastest times qualified (q)
| Rank | Heat | Name | Nationality | Time | Notes |
| 1 | 2 | Gelete Burka | Ethiopia | 9:01.32 | Q |
| 2 | 2 | Hellen Onsando Obiri | Kenya | 9:01.36 | Q |
| DQ | 2 | Nataliya Tobias | Ukraine | 9:01.76 | Q, Doping |
| 3 | 2 | Shitaye Eshete | Bahrain | 9:02.13 | Q |
| 4 | 2 | Helen Clitheroe | Great Britain | 9:02.27 | q |
| 5 | 2 | Sara Hall | United States | 9:02.49 | q |
| 6 | 2 | Alia Saeed Mohammed | United Arab Emirates | 9:02.56 | q |
| 7 | 2 | Lidia Chojecka | Poland | 9:02.93 | q |
| 8 | 2 | Kristina Khaleeva | Russia | 9:07.13 | |
| 9 | 2 | Layes Abdullayeva | Azerbaijan | 9:08.41 | SB |
| 10 | 1 | Meseret Defar | Ethiopia | 9:11.76 | Q |
| 11 | 1 | Sylvia Jebiwott Kibet | Kenya | 9:11.91 | Q |
| DQ | 1 | Svitlana Shmidt | Ukraine | 9:12.39 | Q, Doping |
| 12 | 1 | Jackie Areson | United States | 9:12.62 | Q, SB |
| 13 | 1 | Betlhem Desalegn | United Arab Emirates | 9:12.63 | |
| 14 | 1 | Tejitu Daba | Bahrain | 9:15.96 | |
| 15 | 1 | Silvia Weissteiner | Italy | 9:16.59 | |
| 16 | 1 | Dudu Karakaya | Turkey | 9:16.85 | |
| 17 | 1 | Yuliya Vasilyeva | Russia | 9:17.60 | |
| 18 | 1 | Claudette Mukasakindi | Rwanda | 9:26.89 | NR |
| 19 | 1 | Paula González | Spain | 9:31.09 | |

### Final

12 athletes from 8 countries participated. The final started at 15:51.
| Rank | Name | Nationality | Time | Notes |
| | Hellen Onsando Obiri | Kenya | 8:37.16 | |
| | Meseret Defar | Ethiopia | 8:38.26 | |
| | Gelete Burka | Ethiopia | 8:40.18 | |
| 4 | Sylvia Jebiwott Kibet | Kenya | 8:40.50 | PB |
| 5 | Shitaye Eshete | Bahrain | 8:51.88 | |
| 6 | Lidia Chojecka | Poland | 8:56.86 | |
| 7 | Helen Clitheroe | United Kingdom | 8:59.04 | |
| 8 | Sara Hall | United States | 8:59.95 | |
| DQ | Nataliya Tobias | Ukraine | 9:00.78 | Doping |
| DQ | Svitlana Shmidt | Ukraine | 9:03.99 | Doping |
| 9 | Jackie Areson | United States | 9:12.50 | SB |
| 10 | Alia Saeed Mohammed | United Arab Emirates | 9:15.74 | |