This time, Salwa Eid Naser of Bahrein, coached by Dominican coach Jose Ludwig Rubio, came in first in the Diamond League 400m final, clocking 48.70, a meet record. She had lost all previous confrontations with Marileidy Paulino of the Dominican Republic.
In the Zurich Diamond League finals, Henriette Jaeger of Norway was third with a national record time of 49.49.
Marileidy Paulino was second, clocking 49.23 in the 400m finals. Previously, Paulino had won all her Diamond League races.
The competitors will meet again in Tokyo, for the World Athletics Championships from 13 to 21 September 2025. Paulino’s training has been geared towards winning the 400m in that event, the most important on the track calendar.
Paulino already is the owner of the 400m Olympic record in the women’s 400m, set in the final at the Paris 2024 Olympics, where she won gold with a time of 48.17 seconds, enough to break the previous Olympic record of 48.25 seconds set by Marie-José Pérec in 1996.
Paulino hopes to win in Tokyo and set the world record at the same track in Tokyo where she won her first silver medal, in the same event in 2021 during the Olympic Games held in Japan. Back then, because of Covid-19, there were no fans in attendance. In September 2025, the stadium should be packed.
The long-standing record was 47.60 set by East German Marita Koch in 1985. That record was set at a time when the East German women were suspected of doping. The closest to the Koch record is the time of 48.14 set by Salwa Naser. Paulino’s best is the 48.17 set in the Paris Olympic Games. Back in 1983, Czechoslovak Jarmila Kratochvilova posted 47.99.
At the World Athletics Championships, athletes who break a world record are eligible for a special award of US$100,000. This is in addition to any prize money they might receive for winning a medal or placing in the competition. For example, gold medalists receive US$70,000
Marileidy Paulino’s long-time coach is Cuban Yassen Pérez Gómez. Perez Gomez came to the Dominican Republic in 2013, recruited by then Minister of Sports Jaime David Fernandez Mirabal who sought to improve the level of Dominican athletes. In 2022, Perez Gomez was awarded Dominican nationality to facilitate his international travels.
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Zurich Diamond League
1 September 2025