The women's 400 metres event at the

2021 European Athletics Indoor Championships The 2021 European Athletics Indoor Championships was held from 4 to 7 March 2021 at the Arena Toruń in Toruń, Poland. This was the second time this event was held in Poland after the 1975 edition in Katowice. The four-day competition featured 1 ...

was held on 5 March 2021 at 11:22 (heats) and at 19:33 (semi-finals), and on 6 March 2021 at 20:25 (final) local time.

Medalists

Records

Results

Having run 50.64 earlier in the winter, the fastest time by a European woman since 2009,

Femke Bol Femke Bol (; born 23 February 2000) is a Dutch track and field athlete who specialises in the 400 metres hurdles and 400 metres. In the 400 metres hurdles, Bol's personal best is 51.45 seconds, which is a European record and ma ...

entered the Championships as the overwhelming favorite. Her Dutch teammate, Lieke Klaver, was the second-fastest European woman of the indoor season with 51.21, a top 5 time by a European woman in the last ten years and over half a second faster than the third fastest woman of the season. Other contenders who ran under 52 seconds prior to the Championships included 2019 European indoor and world outdoor finalist

Justyna Święty-Ersetic Justyna Święty-Ersetic (; born 3 December 1992) is a Polish sprinter specialising in the 400 metres. She was the 2018 European champion and a two-time European Indoor Championship medallist in this event. Święty-Ersetic won many medals ...

, 2016 European Youth Champion and 2019 European U23 bronze medallist Andrea Miklos and the Irish 100m and 200m outdoor national record holder Phil Healy. The defending 2019 champion

Léa Sprunger Léa Sprunger (born 5 March 1990) is a former Swiss track and field athlete. Originally a heptathlete like her older sister Ellen, she began concentrating on the 200 metres and 400 metres in 2011, and then on the 400 metres hurdles from 2015. Her ...

was the 13th fastest European woman of the indoor season going into the Championships. All five women who ran under 52 seconds prior to the Championships made the final. The surprise sixth spot went the British 200m specialist

Jodie Williams Jodie Alicia Williams (born 28 September 1993) is a British sprinter who specialises in the 400 metres, having begun her career concentrating on 100 and 200 metres. A prodigious junior, she is the 2009 World Youth Champion at 100 and 200 m, ...

, who was contesting her first 400m at a major Championships. Starting in lane 6, Bol took her first 100m conservatively, and her Dutch teammate Klaver was the first one at the break. Bol took the lead at the back straight of the second lap, and by the 300m mark it was Bol, followed by Klaver and Święty-Ersetic. The last 50m saw Klaver tie up, with Święty-Ersetic moving into second place and Williams into third. Bol's winning time of 50.63 was a 0.01 second improvement of her own National Record and the fastest winning time at the European Indoor Championships since 2007. It was Bol's first international senior individual medal. Three finalists set personal bests in the final.

Heats

Qualification: First 2 in each heat (Q) and the next fastest 4 (q) advance to the Semifinals.

Semifinals

Qualification: First 2 in each heat (Q) advance to the Final.

Final

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:2021 European Athletics Indoor Championships - Women's 400 metres 2021 European Athletics Indoor Championships 400 metres at the European Athletics Indoor Championships

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