| 1 | Sheila Young (Senior) | USA | 42.76 | OR | - |
| 2 | Cathy Priestner (Neo) | CAN | 43.12 | NR | +0.360 |
| 3 | Tatjana Averina (Senior) | URS | 43.17 | | +0.410 |
| 4 | Leah Poulos (Senior) | USA | 43.21 | | +0.450 |
| 5 | Vera Krasnova (Senior) | URS | 43.23 | | +0.470 |
| 6 | Ljubov Sadtsjikova (Senior) | URS | 43.80 | | +1.040 |
| 7 | Makiko Nagaya (Neo) | JPN | 43.88 | | +1.120 |
| 8 | Paula-Irmeli Halonen (M30) | FIN | 43.99 | NRM | +1.230 |
| 9 | Lori Monk (Neo) | USA | 44.00 | | +1.240 |
| 10 | Heike Lange (Neo) | GDR | 44.21 | | +1.450 |
| 11 | Sylvia Burka (Neo) | CAN | 44.35 | | +1.590 |
| 12 | Monika Holzner-Pflug (Neo) | FRG | 44.36 | | +1.600 |
| 13 | Ann-Sofie Järnström (Senior) | SWE | 44.49 | | +1.730 |
| 14 | Stanislawa Wachala-Pietruszczak (Neo) | POL | 44.68 | | +1.920 |
| 15 | Ines Bautzmann (A1) | GDR | 44.82 | | +2.060 |
| 16 | Sigrid Sundby-Dybedahl (M30) | NOR | 45.00 | | +2.240 |
| 17 | Keiko Hasegawa (Neo) | JPN | 45.09 | | +2.330 |
| 18 | Erwina Rys (Neo) | POL | 45.37 | | +2.610 |
| 19 | Christa Jaarsma (Neo) | NED | 45.45 | | +2.690 |
| 20 | Ute Dix (Neo) | GDR | 45.60 | | +2.840 |
| 21 | Kathy Vogt (B2) | CAN | 45.62 | | +2.860 |
| 22 | Sylvia Filipsson (Neo) | SWE | 45.97 | | +3.210 |
| 23 | Annie Borckink (Senior) | NED | 46.00 | | +3.240 |
| 24 | Sijtje van der Lende (Senior) | NED | 46.06 | | +3.300 |
| 25 | Nam-Soon Lee (C2) | KOR | 46.33 | NRJ, NR | +3.570 |
| 26 | Ewa Malewicka (Neo) | POL | 46.67 | | +3.910 |
| 27 | Linda Rombouts (Neo) | BEL | 48.31 | | +5.550 |