2019 World Athletics Championships – Women's 100 metres hurdles

This event lost its defending champion when Sally Pearson retired from the sport two months earlier. The Olympic champion Brianna McNeal disappeared quickly after twitching in her blocks before the gun and being disqualified for a false start in her heat. Even after losing the =#4 and #6 runners in history, the final still sported the world record holder, Kendra Harrison, the season's world leader Danielle Williams with the #7 time in history set a little over two months earlier and the #16 runner in history Janeek Brown from winning the NCAA Championships 4 months earlier, the last two among three Jamaicans who made it to the final.

At the gun of the final, Harrison and Williams got out together with the lead. In lane 9, Megan Tapper got one of the worst starts imaginable to a world championship final, stuttering to the first hurdle and hitting it. By the second hurdle, Olympic silver medalist Nia Ali joined Harrison and Williams in the lead. Over the next two hurdles, Ali and Williams mirrored each other as Harrison lost a few inches. As they cleared the sixth hurdle, Williams began losing ground, as Ali pressed a definite advantage which she continued to expand over the remaining hurdles. Harrison also went past Williams as Tobi Amusan was gaining from behind. Ali crossed the finish line with more than a metre over Harrison. Harrison held off Amusan to get bronze.

Ali's 12.34 winning time took a tenth of a second off her personal best, moving her from =#26 of all time to =#9 with Sharika Nelvis. In fifth place, Andrea Vargas improved her own Costa Rican national record for the fourth time in the 2019 season.

Before the competition records were as follows:[2]

Record	Perf.	Athlete	Nat.	Date	Location
World	12.20	Kendra Harrison	USA	22 Jul 2016	London, Great Britain
Championship	12.28	Sally Pearson	AUS	3 Sep 2011	Daegu, South Korea
World leading	12.32	Danielle Williams	JAM	20 Jul 2019	London, Great Britain
African	12.44	Glory Alozie	NGR	8 Aug 1998	Fontvieille, Monaco
				28 Aug 1998	Brussels, Belgium
				28 Aug 1999	Seville, Spain
Asian	12.44	Olga Shishigina	KAZ	27 Jun 1995	Luzern, Switzerland
NACAC	12.20	Kendra Harrison	USA	22 Jul 2016	London, Great Britain
South American	12.71	Maurren Maggi	BRA	19 May 2001	Manaus, Brazil
European	12.21	Yordanka Donkova	BUL	20 Aug 1988	Stara Zagora, Bulgaria
Oceanian	12.28	Sally Pearson	AUS	3 Sep 2011	Daegu, South Korea

The following records were set at the competition:

Record	Perf.	Athlete	Nat.	Date
Costa Rican	12.68	Andrea Vargas	CRC	5 Oct 2019
Dutch	12.62	Nadine Visser	NED	6 Oct 2019
Costa Rican	12.65	Andrea Vargas	CRC
	12.64

The event schedule, in local time (UTC+3), was as follows:[3]