[2] The event was won by Peter Snell of New Zealand, successfully defending his 1960 gold medal (the third man to do so), and completing the first half of his 800 metres/1500 metres double.

Returning to the final from four years earlier were defending champion Peter Snell and bronze medalist George Kerr.

While Snell started strongly, he found himself in third place at the break, led by aggressive front-running by Wilson Kiprugut.

After establishing a three-metre lead, he held his position, even extending it a little to take the repeat gold.

Snell was too far ahead for Crothers to catch, but Kiprugut closed down on Kerr, passing him and sealing the bronze medal with a dip at the finish.

[1] Chad, Colombia, Hong Kong, Iran, Malaysia, Mongolia, and Tanzania appeared in the event for the first time.

Great Britain and the United States each made their 14th appearance, tied for the most among all nations.

In the second semifinal, George Kerr and Wilson Kiprugut each finished at 1:46.1 to set a new, though short-lived, Olympic record.