| Final 20.10h | time | L | | 1. Cathy Freeman |  AUS | 49.11s | 6 | | 2. Lorraine Graham |  JAM | 49.58s | 4 | | 3. Katharine Merry |  GBR | 49.72s | 3 | | 4. Donna Fraser | GBR | 49.79s | 2 | | 5. Ana Guevara |  MEX | 49.96s | 5 | | 6. Heide Seyerling |  RSA | 50.05s | 7 | | 7. Falilat Ogunkoya |  NGR | 50.12s | 8 | | 8. Olga Kotlyarova |  RUS | 51.04s | 1 |
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| Semi 1 20.00h | time | L | | 1. Lorraine Graham | JAM | 50.28s | 4 | | 2. Katharine Merry | GBR | 50.32s | 3 | | 3. Heide Seyerling | RSA | 51.06s | 5 | | 4. Olga Kotlyarova | RUS | 51.21s | 7 | | 5. LaDonna Antoine |  CAN | 51.26s | 6 | | 6. Natalya Nazarova | RUS | 51.83s | 2 | | 7. Mireille Nguimgo |  CMR | 52.03s | 1 | | 8. Nova Peris-Kneebone | AUS | 52.49s | 8 |
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| Semi 2 20.07h | time | L | | 1. Cathy Freeman | AUS | 50.01s | 3 | | 2. Ana Guevara | MEX | 50.11s | 5 | | 3. Falilat Ogunkoya | NGR | 50.18s | 4 | | 4. Donna Fraser | GBR | 50.21s | 7 | | 5. Sandie Richards | JAM | 50.42s | 2 | | 6. Jitka Burianova |  CZE | 51.15s | 6 | | 7. ThiamAmy Mbacke |  SEN | 51.60s | 1 | | 8. K.Mathews Beenamol |  IND | 52.04s | 8 |
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| Quarter 1 19.30h | time | L | | 1. Jitka Burianova | CZE | 50.85s | 3 | | 2. LaDonna Antoine | CAN | 50.92s | 5 | | 3. Nova Peris-Kneebone | AUS | 51.28s | 2 | | 4. Natalya Nazarova | RUS | 51.44s | 6 | | 5. Claudine Komgang | CMR | 51.57s | 7 | | 6. Monique Hennagan |  USA | 51.85s | 4 | | 7. Nadjina Kaltouma |  CHA | 52.60s | 1 | | 8. Aliann Pompey |  GUY | 53.42s | 8 |
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| Quarter 2 19.37h | time | L | | 1. Katharine Merry | GBR | 50.50s | 3 | | 2. Heide Seyerling | RSA | 50.87s | 7 | | 3. Olga Kotlyarova | RUS | 50.97s | 6 | | 4. Sandie Richards | JAM | 51.00s | 5 | | 5. Charity Opara | NGR | 51.04s | 4 | | 6. Zana Minina |  LTU | 52.53s | 8 | | 7. Norfalia Carabali |  ESP | 52.63s | 1 | | 8. Foy Williams | CAN | 52.68s | 2 |
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| Quarter 3 19.44h | time | L | | 1. Lorraine Graham | JAM | 50.66s | 8 | | 2. Ana Guevara | MEX | 51.19s | 5 | | 3. ThiamAmy Mbacke | SEN | 51.64s | 6 | | 4. K.Mathews Beenamol | IND | 51.81s | 4 | | 5. Olabisi Afolabi | NGR | 51.87s | 3 | | 6. Otilia Ruicu |  ROM | 52.28s | 1 | | 7. Allison Curbishley | GBR | 52.50s | 2 | | 8. Lee Naylor | AUS | 53.83s | 7 |
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| Quarter 4 19.51h | time | L | | 1. Cathy Freeman | AUS | 50.31s | 4 | | 2. Falilat Ogunkoya | NGR | 50.49s | 6 | | 3. Donna Fraser | GBR | 50.77s | 8 | | 4. Mireille Nguimgo | CMR | 51.08s | 5 | | 5. La Tasha Colander-Richardson | USA | 52.07s | 3 | | 6. K.V.Damayanthi Dharsha |  SRI | 52.35s | 1 | | 7. Hana Benesova | CZE | 52.70s | 2 | | 8. Barbara Petrahn |  HUN | 52.72s | 7 |
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| Heat 1 19.24h | time | L | | 1. LaTasha Colander-Richardson | USA | 51.75s | 5 | | 2. Mireille Nguimgo | CMR | 51.88s | 6 | | 3. Heide Seyerling | RSA | 51.92s | 3 | | 4. Foy Williams | CAN | 52.94s | 2 | | 5. Christine Amertil |  BAH | 53.12s | 4 | | 6. Oksana Luneva |  KGZ | 54.98s | 8 | | 7. Hazel-Ann Regis |  GRN | 55.11s | 7 |
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| Heat 2 19.30h | time | L | | 1. Charity Opara | NGR | 51.77s | 4 | | 2. Natalya Nazarova | RUS | 52.05s | 2 | | 3. K.V.Damayanthi Dharsha | SRI | 52.13s | 6 | | 4. Nadjina Kaltouma | CHA | 52.34s | 3 | | 5. Lee Naylor | AUS | 53.10s | 1 | | 6. Svetlana Bodritskaya |  KAZ | 53.91s | 5 | | 7. Lilian Bwalya |  ZAM | 54.77s | 8 | | 8. Maritza Figueroa |  NCA | 58.82s | 7 |
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| Heat 3 19.36h | time | L | | 1. Thiam Amy Mbacke | SEN | 51.79s | 8 | | 2. Ana Guevara | MEX | 52.34s | 5 | | 3. Otilia Ruicu | ROM | 52.65s | 4 | | 4. Karen Shinkins |  IRL | 53.27s | 2 | | 5. Dagoberto Gonzalez |  COL | 53.34s | 6 | | 6. Safia Abukar Hussein |  SOM | 1:13.25 | 3 |
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| Heat 4 19.42h | time | L | | 1. Cathy Freeman | AUS | 51.63s | 3 | | 2. Monique Hennagan | USA | 51.73s | 4 | | 3. Claudine Komgang | CMR | 51.74s | 8 | | 4. Norfalia Carabali | ESP | 52.36s | 7 | | 5. Yelena Rurak |  UKR | 53.45s | 2 | | 6. Kristina Perica |  CRO | 53.72s | 6 | | 7. Awatef Ben Hassine |  TUN | 54.50s | 5 |
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| Heat 5 19.48h | time | L | | 1. Katharine Merry | GBR | 51.61s | 7 | | 2. Sandie Richards | JAM | 51.86s | 4 | | 3. Nova Peris-Kneebone | AUS | 52.51s | 8 | | 4. Hana Benesova | CZE | 52.85s | 6 | | 5. Aliann Pompey | GUY | 53.09s | 2 | | 6. Vernetta Lesforis |  LCA | 54.67s | 5 | | 7. Klodiana Shala |  ALB | 56.41s | 1 | | -. Marie-Jose Perec |  FRA | DNS | 3 |
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| Heat 6 19.54h | time | L | | 1. Jitka Burianova | CZE | 51.59s | 4 | | 2. Olabisi Afolabi | NGR | 51.61s | 3 | | 3. Lorraine Graham | JAM | 51.65s | 5 | | 4. Allison Curbishley | GBR | 52.20s | 6 | | 5. Barbara Petrahn | HUN | 52.86s | 2 | | 6. Tonique Williams | BAH | 53.43s | 7 | | 7. Marcia Daniel |  DMA | 58.20s | 8 | | 8. Haissa Ali Garba |  NIG | 1:07.49 | 1 |
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| Heat 7 20.00h | time | L | | 1. K.Mathews Beenamol | IND | 51.51s | 8 | | 2. Olga Kotlyarova | RUS | 51.99s | 6 | | 3. Zana Minina | LTU | 52.38s | 7 | | 4. Michele Collins | USA | 53.66s | 4 | | 5. Tanya Oxley |  BAR | 54.22s | 3 | | 6. Daniela Spasova-Georgieva |  BUL | 54.46s | 1 | | 7. Dijana Kojic |  BIH | 55.61s | 2 | | 8. Hamed Ahmed Mohamed |  SUD | 1:02.94 | 5 |
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| Heat 8 20.06 | time | L | | 1. LaDonna Antoine | CAN | 51.78s | 5 | | 2. Falilat Ogunkoya | NGR | 51.88s | 6 | | 3. Donna Fraser | GBR | 52.33s | 8 | | 4. Svetlana Pospelova | RUS | 53.34s | 3 | | 5. Yelena Piskunova |  UZB | 55.40s | 2 | | 6. Ann Mooney |  PNG | 55.55s | 4 | | -. Brigita Langerholc |  SLO | DNS | 7 |
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