Karsten Warholm continues to make history. After a 46.70 clocking for victory in the Zurich Diamond League last Thursday, the 29-year-old now holds the 30 fastest 400m hurdles times on the European all-time list.
And the Norwegian viking will be looking to create yet more history by becoming the first four-time winner of the 400m hurdles title at the World Athletics Championships in Tokyo from 13-21 September.
Ahead of his pursuit of yet another global title, European Athletics looks back at some of Warholm’s greatest moments of his career so far.
First European record - 47.33 (13 June 2019)
Karsten Warholm eclipsed Stephane Diagana’s long-standing European record on home soil at the Bislett Games in Oslo with 47.33, his first of 30 performances under the previous European record.
What he said: “My coach thought I would run 47.30 so he was nearly right. I've worked so hard during the winter with the pressure coming at me, so this is a very special feeling, it's the best in the world.”
Second European record - 47.12 (20 July 2019)
That record lasted all of five weeks as Warholm revised the record books in his very next race. Returning to the stadium in which he won his first world title in 2017, Warholm improved to 47.12 for victory in London.
What he said: “I always try to surprise but at the same time it's not a given. It takes hard work, dedication and a lot for me to get those extraordinary times.”
First sub-47 second clocking - 46.92 (29 August 2019)
Warholm became just the third athlete in history to break the 47 second-barrier in the 400m hurdles with a 46.92 clocking for victory in Zurich ahead of Rai Benjamin (46.98) who was beginning to emerge as the Norwegian’s principal rival.
What he said: “It was crazy. I knew that I would run a good time but this race was just amazing. And the best is yet to come.”
Second sub-47 second clocking - 46.87 (23 August 2020)
The 2020 season might have been decimated by coronavirus but Warholm managed to salvage something from a season decimated by the postponement of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.
Travelling to Stockholm in a camper van with his long-time coach Leif Olav Alnes, Warholm charged to another European record of 46.87 in Stockholm despite clattering the last hurdle to inch ever closer to Kevin Young’s long-standing world record of 46.78.
What he said: “To be honest when I hit the last hard, I was thinking ‘my race is gone’ but looking at the clock and seeing 46.87, it was a huge feeling and of course I am proud. Me and my coach have been working really hard through this time and I am really proud to accomplish these things.”
First world record - 46.70 (1 July 2021)
Having been on the verge of breaking the world record in the previous two seasons, Warholm finally revised the world record in 2021 and what better place to do it than on home soil in a packed Bislett Stadium in Oslo?
Warholm finally gained ownership of the world record with a 46.70 clocking but that record wouldn’t stay on the books for long…
What he said: "It is very special to do it here in Bislett in front of a great crowd including my friends and family. This is my first 400m hurdles of the season, so I really think there is more in the tank."
First sub-46 second clocking - 45.94 (3 August 2021)
In one of the greatest races in Olympic history, Karsten Warholm outpaced Rai Benjamin off the final hurdle to win Olympic gold to become the first athlete in history to break the 46 second-barrier with 45.94. Many consider this as the greatest individual performance in the history of the sport.
What he said: “I train like a f***ing maniac. I use all my time on this. Now I just have to set myself new goals because I'm not done yet.”
Second European title - 47.12 (19 August 2022)
After limping home in a distant seventh at the World Athletics Championships, Warholm was back in record-breaking form following an early season hamstring injury just a few weeks later at the European Athletics Championships in Munich.
Warholm won his second European 400m hurdles title in 47.12, breaking the long-standing championship record of 47.48 set by West Germany’s Harald Schmid in 1982.
What he said: “A European gold medal is huge. Now for some German beers!”
Third world title - 46.89 (23 August 2023)
Warholm recaptured the world 400m hurdles title in Budapest with a 46.89 clocking, the second fastest winning time in World Athletics Championships history.
What he said: “I feel like the gold medal is back where it belongs. It's an amazing feeling.”
Third European title - 46.98 (11 June 2024)
Warholm won his third successive European 400m hurdles title in Rome, taking the championship record below the 47 second-barrier for the first time with 46.98.
What he said: “It was great to compete here and I am glad that Tamberi jumps on the same day. The crowd was going crazy and I am enjoying this atmosphere.”
Second fastest time ever - 46.28 (16 August 2025)
Warholm might have relinquished his Olympic title but Warholm dispelled any claims that he’s a declining force in the event with a power-packed performance in Silesia.
After two early season world bests in the 300m hurdles, Warholm translated this form to the one lap distance with a world leading 46.28, the second fastest time of his career and the third fastest time in history.
What he said: “I was a little bit surprised that it was this good. But still I knew that I was very fast in the training camps that I did. It shows that I am on the right way.”
