2022 European Athletics Championships – Women's 400 metres hurdles

The women's 400 metres hurdles at the 2022 European Athletics Championships took place in three rounds at the Olympiastadion in Munich, Germany, from 17 to 19 August 2022.

The three heats of round 1 were held on 17 August. The twelve fastest athletes joined the twelve highest-ranking athletes, who had a bye, in the semifinals. The three heats of the semifinals were held on 18 August. The two fastest athletes of each heat and the next two fastest of the rest qualified for the finals. Viivi Lehikoinen set a Finnish record of 54.50 seconds in the semifinals.

The final was held on 19 August. Femke Bol of the Netherlands won in a new championship record of 52.67 seconds, followed by Viktoriya Tkachuk of Ukraine in 54.30 seconds and Anna Ryzhykova of Ukraine in 54.86 seconds.

Background
At the start of the 2024 European Athletics Championships, Femke Bol held the European record of 52.03 seconds and European leading time of 52.27 seconds. Natalya Antyukh held the championship record of 52.92 seconds. Sydney McLaughlin held the world record of 50.68 seconds, which was also the world leading mark.

Qualification
For the women's 400 metres hurdles, the qualification period was from 27 July 2021 to 26 July 2022. Athletes could qualify by running the entry standard of 55.85 seconds or faster, by a receiving a wild card, or by their position on the World Athletics Rankings for the event.

Round 1
The three heats of round 1 were held on 17 August, starting at 11:40 (UTC+2). The first three athletes in each heat (Q) and the next three fastest athletes (q) advanced to the semifinals. The twelve highest ranked athletes received a bye into the semifinals. Four athletes set a personal best (PB).

Semifinals


The semifinal heats were held on 18 August, starting at 11:55 (UTC+2). The first two athletes in each heat (Q) and the next two fastest athletes (q) advance to the final. Viivi Lehikoinen set a Finnish record (NR) of 54.50 seconds and another three athletes set personal bests (PB) in this round.

Final


The final was held at 19 August, starting at 21:45 (UTC+2) in the evening. Femke Bol of the Netherlands won the gold medal with a new championship record (CR) of 52.67 seconds, improving the 12-year-old record of Natalya Antyukh by 0.25 seconds. Two days earlier, she had also won the women's 400 metres, this double victory was unprecendented at the European Athletics Championships. Viktoriya Tkachuk of Ukraine won the silver medal in 54.30 seconds and Anna Ryzhykova of Ukraine won the bronze medal in 54.86 seconds.