| Final A | Team | time | Rk. | | 1. Zhuang Yong |  CHN | 54.64s | 5. | | 2. Jenny Beth Thompson |  USA | 54.84s | 1. | | 3. Franziska van Almsick |  GER | 54.94s | 2. | | 4. Nicole Haislett | USA | 55.19s | 4. | | 5. Catherine Plewinski |  FRA | 55.72s | 3. | | 6. Le Jingyi | CHN | 55.89s | 6. | | 7. Simone Osygus | GER | 55.93s | 7. | | 8. Karin Brienesse |  NED | 56.59s | 7. |
| Final B | Team | time | Rk. | | 9. Suzu Chiba |  JPN | 55.97s | 9. | | 10.Luminiţa Dobrescu |  ROU | 56.17s | 11. | | 11.Yelena Shubina |  URS | 56.19s | 10. | | 12.Gitta Jensen |  DEN | 56.59s | 12. | | 13.Mildred Muis | NED | 56.64s | 14. | | 14.Yevgeniya Yermakova | URS | 56.66s | 14. | | 15.Susie O'Neill |  AUS | 56.68s | 13. | | 16.Andrea Nugent |  CAN | 56.91s | 16. |
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| Heat 6 | Team | time | Rk. | | 1. Jenny Beth Thompson | USA | 54.69s | 1. | | 2. Franziska van Almsick | GER | 55.40s | 2. | | 3. Catherine Plewinski | FRA | 55.44s | 3. | | 4. Le Jingyi | CHN | 55.87s | 6. | | 5. Yelena Shubina | URS | 56.31s | 10. | | 6. Gitta Jensen | DEN | 56.47s | 12. | | 7. Martina Moravcová |  TCH | 57.19s | 18. | | 8. Ellenor Svensson |  SWE | 58.03s | 23. |
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| Heat 5 | Team | time | Rk. | | 1. Nicole Haislett | USA | 55.67s | 4. | | 2. Simone Osygus | GER | 55.98s | 7. | | 3. Suzu Chiba | JPN | 56.26s | 9. | | 4. Luminiţa Dobrescu | ROU | 56.45s | 11. | | 5. Susie O'Neill | AUS | 56.58s | 13. | | 6. Yevgeniya Yermakova | URS | 56.67s | 14. | | 7. Andrea Nugent | CAN | 56.82s | 16. | | 8. Toni Jeffs |  NZL | 58.80s | 29. |
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| Heat 4 | Team | time | Rk. | | 1. Zhuang Yong | CHN | 55.78s | 5. | | 2. Karin Brienesse | NED | 55.98s | 7. | | 3. Mildred Muis | NED | 56.67s | 14. | | 4. Karen Pickering |  GBR | 57.17s | 17. | | 5. Eva Nyberg | SWE | 57.36s | 19. | | 6. Ayako Nakano | JPN | 57.71s | 22. | | 7. Allison Higson | CAN | 58.47s | 25. | | 8. Karen Van Wirdum | AUS | 58.75s | 28. |
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| Heat 3 | Team | time | Rk. | | 1. Marianne Kriel |  RSA | 57.50s | 20. | | 2. Claudia Franco |  ESP | 57.57s | 21. | | 3. Minna Salmela |  FIN | 58.04s | 24. | | 4. Natalia Pulido | ESP | 58.54s | 26. | | 5. Mette Nørskov Nielsen | DEN | 58.67s | 27. | | 6. Alison Sheppard | GBR | 58.83s | 31. | | 6. Diana Ureche | ROU | 58.83s | 31. | | 8. Ilaria Sciorelli |  ITA | 59.11s | 36. |
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| Heat 2 | Team | time | Rk. | | 1. Rania El-Wani |  EGY | 58.82s | 30. | | 2. Gillian Thomson |  PHI | 59.02s | 34. | | 3. Monica Dahl |  NAM | 59.05s | 35. | | 4. Marja Päivinen-Pärssinen | FIN | 59.46s | 38. | | 5. Shelley Cramer |  USV | 59.99s | 39. | | 6. Helga Sigurðardóttir |  ISL | 1:00.29 | 40. | | 7. Ana Alegria |  POR | 1:00.35 | 41. | | 8. Ratiporn Wong |  THA | 1:00.85 | 43. |
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| Heat 1 | Team | time | Rk. | | 1. Joscelin Yeo |  SIN | 58.93s | 33. | | 2. Robyn Lamsam |  HKG | 59.26s | 37. | | 3. Joshua Ikhaghomi |  NGR | 1:00.72 | 42. | | 4. Corinne Leclair |  MRI | 1:00.95 | 44. | | 5. Sharon Pickering |  FIJ | 1:01.42 | 45. | | 6. Ana Fortin |  HON | 1:01.50 | 46. | | 7. Paola Peñarrieta |  BOL | 1:04.08 | 47. | | 8. Elsa Freire |  ANG | 1:05.45 | 48. |
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