| 1 | Violeta Beclea-Szekely | ROM | 4:05,00 | Q |
| 2 | Ana Amelia Menéndez | ESP | 4:05,21 | Q |
| 3 | Carla Sacramento | POR | 4:05,21 | Q |
| 4 | Marla Runyan | USA | 4:05,27 | Q |
| 5 | Anna Jakubczak | POL | 4:05,71 | Q |
| 6 | Hayley Parry-Tullett | GBR | 4:05,72 | |
| 7 | Olga Nelyubova | RUS | 4:06,01 | |
| 8 | Malin Ewerlöf | SWE | 4:07,67 | |
| 9 | Nouria Mérah-Benida | ALG | 4:08,90 | |
| 10 | Nuria Fernández | ESP | 4:09,39 | |
| 11 | Leah Pells | CAN | 4:10,76 | |
| 12 | Judit Varga | HUN | 4:16,66 | |
| 13 | Stephanie Best | USA | 4:19,87 | |
| Yelena-Ebru Kopytova-Kavaklioglu | TUR | DNS | ||
| Sukhbaatar Erdenetuya | MGL | DNS |
| 1 | Regina Jacobs | USA | 4:04,75 | Q |
| 2 | Svetlana Masterkova | RUS | 4:04,83 | Q |
| 3 | Anita Weyermann | SUI | 4:04,88 | Q |
| 4 | Kutre Dulecha | ETH | 4:04,93 | Q |
| 5 | Elena Buhaianu | ROM | 4:04,97 | Q |
| 6 | Jackline Maranga | KEN | 4:04,98 | q |
| 7 | Lidia Chojecka | POL | 4:05,16 | q |
| 8 | Lyudmila Rogachova | RUS | 4:05,72 | |
| 9 | Maite Zúñiga | ESP | 4:06,75 | |
| 10 | Robyn Meagher | CAN | 4:06,88 | |
| 11 | Helen Pattinson | GBR | 4:12,17 | |
| 12 | Elaine Fitzgerald | IRL | 4:12,77 | |
| 13 | Frédérique Quentin | FRA | 4:14,76 | |
| 14 | Julia Sakara | ZIM | 4:19,65 |