The men's artistic individual all-around competition at the 2008 Summer Olympics was held at the Beijing National Indoor Stadium on August 9 and 14.

Yang, who had earned silver in 2000, was the 13th man to receive multiple medals in the individual all-around (and the first to do so in non-consecutive Games).

Benoît Caranobe of France took bronze, the first men's all-around medal for that nation since 1920.

[2] Six of the top 10 gymnasts from the 2004 Games returned: silver medalist Kim Dae-Eun and bronze medalist Yang Tae Young of South Korea, fifth-place finisher Rafael Martínez of Spain, sixth-place finisher Hiroyuki Tomita of Japan, seventh-place finisher (and 2000 silver medalist) Yang Wei of China, and eighth-place finisher Marian Drăgulescu of Romania.

The FIG Executive Board made invitational selections to ensure host country and continental representation and the Tripartite Commission made an invitation.

In the third straight Games with a significant format change, the Code of Points was implemented.