There were a total number of 41 participating athletes from 28 nations, with six qualifying heats, three semifinals, and the final held on Saturday July 26, 1980.

The event was won by 0.5 seconds by Steve Ovett of Great Britain, the nation's first gold medal in the men's 800 metres since winning four in a row from 1920 to 1932.

[2] Benin, Botswana, Bulgaria, Guinea, Kuwait, Laos, Lesotho, Libya, Sierra Leone, and Syria appeared in the event for the first time.

Britain's Steve Ovett was boxed in and pushed East Germany's Detlef Wagenknecht, in order to get more room and a tactically better place.

Behind Guimaraes, Warren and Wagenknecht, Kirov and East Germany's Andreas Busse were tied for the fourth place.

While he managed to pass the Brazilian, Coe lost valuable time and energy, and he was only able to catch one more runner, Kirov, in the final straight's second half.

(See YouTube videos of the 800-metre final; Kenny Moore, Best Efforts; Pat Roberts, The Perfect Distance: Coe and Ovett - The Record-Breaking Rivalry; Juoksija-lehti (The Runner Magazine), Moskovan olympiakirja (The Moscow Olympic Book).)