2013 World Championships in Athletics – Women's 400 metres hurdles
World record Yuliya Pechonkina ( RUS ) 52.34 Tula , Russia 8 August 2003
Championship record Melaine Walker ( JAM ) 52.42 Berlin , Germany 20 August 2009
World Leading Zuzana Hejnová ( CZE ) 53.07 London , United Kingdom 26 July 2013
African Record Nezha Bidouane ( MAR ) 52.90 Seville , Spain 25 August 1999
Asian Record Qing Han ( CHN ) 53.96 Beijing , People 's Republic of China 9 September 1993
North , Central American and Caribbean record Melaine Walker ( JAM ) 52.42 Berlin , Germany 20 August 2009
South American Record Lucimar Teodoro ( BRA ) 55.84 Belém , Brazil 24 May 2009
European Record Yuliya Pechonkina ( RUS ) 52.34 Tula , Russia 8 August 2003
Oceanian record Debbie Flintoff-King ( AUS ) 53.17 Seoul , South Korea 27 September 1988
Records
Prior to the competition , the records were as follows : [ 2 ]
The women's 400 metres hurdles at the 2013 World Championships in Athletics was held at the Luzhniki Stadium on 12-15 August. Running on home soil, reigning Olympic Champion Natalya Antyukh might have been expected to be the favorite. Instead she made a quick exit, finishing sixth in her semifinal. The Olympic silver medalist from that close Olympic final is the returning champion Lashinda Demus, but having a bye, she has raced sparingly. She ran her season best to qualify in that same semi. The distant bronze medalist Zuzana Hejnová in 2012 was the 2013 world leader. She won the first semi, almost half a second faster than the other qualifiers. Perri Shakes-Drayton won the second semi passing a fading Demus. In the final, Hejnová in lane 3 was first to the first hurdle but backed off. It was Demus took off in lane 4 and was the leader down the back stretch, with training partner Dalilah Muhammad almost on the same pace. Both are trained by Demus' mom. Shakes-Drayton between them tried to keep up with the two Americans.