Polish flags were flourished after a women’s final in the new-look 400m format at the World Athletics Indoor Championships Kujawy Pomorze 26 as Natalia Bukowiecka took silver behind the 20-year-old Czech phenomenon Lurdes Gloria Manuel, who won in a personal best of 50.76.

An innovation designed to avoid awkwardly tight running for some athletes saw this final become a drama in two parts, with the two top qualifiers and the next two fastest taking part in different races of four.

After home fans had seen Poland secure a first medal at these championships with bronze in the morning session’s mixed 4x400m relay, there were high hopes of more from Bukowiecka.

The 28-year-old already had world indoor silver and bronze in the women’s 4x400m relay and an individual world silver from 2023 – a year before she won European gold and Olympic bronze.

As the fourth fastest qualifier in the semi-finals in 51.41, she took to the track first with third-fastest Lieke Klaver of the Netherlands, on 51.23, along with Blanca Hervas of Spain and Zoe Sherar.

The knowledge that this was a time trial altered the dynamic of the racing, and Bukowiecka gave it everything to overhaul her Dutch rival and cross first, equalling her national record of 50.83, with Klaver second in 51.02.

For them the waiting began as two fastest qualifiers – Norway’s Henriette Jaeger on 50.95 and Manuel on 50.96 – took to the boards knowing exactly what they needed to do.

Manuel, world U20 champion in 2024 and brutally sidelined for all of the 2025 outdoor season with a ruptured hamstring, had floated through the early rounds.

She kept on flying, crossing in a winning time and personal best of 50.76, with Jaeger, under extreme pressure to catch her on the final bend, losing composure and stumbling briefly on the infield before finishing fourth.

Bukowiecka and Klaver were together watching the scoreboard, and once it confirmed they were both medallists they hugged gleefully before heading off in search of flags.

Manuel – coached, like Klaver, and the absent Femke Bol, by Laurent Meuwly – thus announced her senior individual arrival.

"There are no words to describe my feelings at the moment,” Manuel said. “Making my debut at the World Indoors as a senior and finishing with the gold is something I cannot even dream of.

“I was very tired after two races yesterday: the heat in the morning and the semi-final in the evening. It was something unusual for me. I felt like I was not fully recovered."

Fourth place went to Haiti’s Wadeline Venlogh, who clocked a national record of 51.07.

Kenya’s Mercy Oketch was fifth in a national record of 51.25, ahead of Spain’s Blanca Hervas, who set a personal best of 51.43.

Jaeger, who had arrived in Poland with the fastest season’s best, was seventh in 51.50, with Zoe Sherar of Canada eighth in 51.74.

Mike Rowbottom for World Athletics

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