The men's 200 m has been present on the Olympic athletics programme since 1900 and the women's 200 m has been held continuously since its introduction at the 1948 Games.

Bärbel Wöckel of East Germany became the first to defend the title in 1980 and Veronica Campbell-Brown repeated that feat in 2008.

The 1968 medal podium ceremony for the men's 200 metres witnessed a prominent political protest in the form of a Black Power salute by the African-American medalists Tommie Smith and John Carlos.

The third medalist, Peter Norman of Australia, wore a badge for the Olympic Project for Human Rights in solidarity.

[5] This event is no longer considered part of the official Olympic history of the 200 metres or the athletics programme in general.