The Most Explosive Women's 400m Hurdles Final in Years

What does it take to run the race of your life when the pressure is at its absolute peak? In Birmingham, eight of Europe's finest 400m hurdlers found out exactly that — and what unfolded over those 400 metres will stay with everyone who watched it. Emma Zapletálová had been the form runner coming in, but form means nothing until you cash it in on the biggest stage. Around her, Emily Newnham had been building her reputation as a closer — a woman who finds another gear in the final straight when others are fading. Fatumata Binta Diallo, Ayomide Folorunso, Paulien Couckuyt — every one of them arrived with a reason to believe this could be their night.