Starting in lane 2, co-world record holder Don Quarrie of Jamaica was out to the lead from the gun.

Through the turn, Hasely Crawford of Trinidad and Tobago pulled up and eventually limped home almost a minute behind the field.

The favorite was Don Quarrie of Jamaica, who had also been favored four years earlier in Munich but pulled a hamstring in the semifinals.

His biggest competitors in 1976 were Steve Williams of the United States, who was out injured, and James Gilkes of Guyana, who was not competing due to the African boycott.

[2] Antigua and Barbuda, the Ivory Coast, Kuwait, and Papua New Guinea each made their debut in the event.

The United States made its 17th appearance, the only nation to have competed at each edition of the men's 200 metres to date.

The "fastest loser" system introduced in 1960 was available but not used this Games due to the distribution of heats making it unnecessary.