The men's 800 metres at the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul, South Korea had an entry list of 70 competitors from 53 nations, with nine qualifying heats (70), four second-round races (32) and two semifinals (16), before the final (8) took off on Monday September 26, 1988.

The final started out as a battle for the pole as José Luíz Barbosa and his teammate Joaquim Cruz led through the first turn, with Nixon Kiprotich in close pursuit.

Johnny Gray, known for this kind of destructive first lap was back in a more conservative fifth place, just behind Peter Elliott.

Through the third turn, Saïd Aouita came forward from lagging at the back to move into challenging position behind Elliott.

Deterred for a moment, Aouita took a second run at Elliott, edging ahead for bronze, but too far back to catch Cruz for silver.

[2] Thirteen nations had never had a competitor in the men's 800 metres before: Andora, Angola, Bangladesh, Bermuda, the People's Republic of China, Chinese Taipei, the Cook Islands, Cyprus, Fiji, Papua New Guinea, Qater, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, and Zaire all appeared in the event for the first time.

Great Britain made its 20th appearance, most among all nations, having had no competitors in the event only in the 1904 Games in St. Louis.