| | Event type
1,500 metres, Men
| Date | 29 September – 1 October 1988 |
|---|---|
| Status | Olympic |
| Location | Ol-lim-pik Ju-gyeong-gi-jang, Seoul Sports Complex, Seoul |
| Participants | 59 from 46 countries |
Two-time defending champion Sebastian Coe was not chosen for the British team. But Steve Cram was back and became the first runner to make the 1,500 final at three Olympics. The world record was held by Morocco’s Saïd Aouita, who had won the 5K in 1984. Aouita ran but withdrew from the semis with a hamstring injury. The 1983 World Champion Abdi Bile of Somalia had to withdraw shortly before the Olympics began, because of a tibial stress fracture. The final was run at a slow pace, with Kenya’s Peter Rono taking the lead at 700 metres, the 800 being passed in over two minutes. He was completely unheralded but held the lead to the end, never letting any of the kickers pass him. His final 800 was run in 1:50.0.
| Pos | Nr | Athlete | NOC | R1 | SF | Final | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 668 | Peter Rono |  KEN | 3:37.65 (1 h3) | 3:38.25 (2 h2) | 3:35.96 (1) | Gold | ||
| 2 | 418 | Peter Elliott |  GBR | 3:38.60 (3 h3) | 3:38.56 (3 h1) | 3:36.15 (2) | Silver | ||
| 3 | 466 | Jens-Peter Herold |  GDR | 3:40.87 (1 h4) | 3:38.59 (5 h2) | 3:36.21 (3) | Bronze | ||
| 4 | 415 | Steve Cram | GBR | 3:40.89 (1 h1) | 3:38.30 (2 h1) | 3:36.24 (4) | |||
| 5 | 1128 | Steve Scott |  USA | 3:41.57 (2 h1) | 3:38.20 (1 h2) | 3:36.99 (5) | |||
| 6 | 513 | Han Kulker |  NED | 3:40.90 (2 h4) | 3:39.06 (4 h1) | 3:37.08 (6) | |||
| 7 | 649 | Kip Cheruiyot | KEN | 3:39.98 (1 h2) | 3:38.09 (1 h1) | 3:37.94 (7) | |||
| 8 | 555 | Marcus O'Sullivan |  IRL | 3:42.01 (6 h1) | 3:38.84 (6 h2) | 3:38.39 (8) | |||
| 9 | 877 | Mário Silva |  POR | 3:42.24 (5 h2) | 3:38.56 (4 h2) | 3:38.77 (9) | |||
| 10 | 1068 | Jeff Atkinson | USA | 3:38.33 (2 h3) | 3:39.12 (5 h1) | 3:40.80 (10) | |||
| 11 | 650 | Joseph Chesire | KEN | 3:41.72 (4 h1) | 3:39.17 (6 h1) | 3:40.82 (11) | |||
| 12 | 1186 | Omer Khalifa |  SUD | 3:41.46 (5 h4) | 3:38.40 (3 h2) | 3:41.07 (12) | |||
| 7 h1 r2/3 | 231 | Mogens Guldberg |  DEN | 3:42.01 (3 h2) | 3:39.86 (7 h1) | – | |||
| 7 h2 r2/3 | 939 | Markus Hacksteiner |  SUI | 3:39.05 (4 h3) | 3:39.18 (7 h2) | – | |||
| 8 h1 r2/3 | 326 | Rémy Geoffroy |  FRA | 3:41.68 (3 h1) | 3:40.96 (8 h1) | – | |||
| 8 h2 r2/3 | 1083 | Mark Deady | USA | 3:41.91 (2 h2) | 3:39.47 (8 h2) | – | |||
| 9 h1 r2/3 | 8 | Rachid Kram |  ALG | 3:39.90 (6 h3) | 3:41.39 (9 h1) | – | |||
| 9 h2 r2/3 | 414 | Steve Crabb | GBR | 3:41.12 (3 h4) | 3:39.55 (9 h2) | – | |||
| 10 h1 r2/3 | 230 | Spyros Spyrou |  CYP | 3:42.32 (9 h3) | 3:43.49 (10 h1) | – | |||
| 10 h2 r2/3 | 111 | Mbiganyi Thee |  BOT | 3:41.97 (8 h3) | 3:42.62 (10 h2) | – | |||
| 11 h2 r2/3 | 584 | Gennaro Di Napoli |  ITA | 3:41.85 (5 h1) | 3:43.58 (11 h2) | – | |||
| 12 h2 r2/3 | 735 | Moustafa Lachaal |  MAR | 3:39.20 (5 h3) | 3:45.65 (12 h2) | – | |||
| AC h1 r2/3 | 737 | Abdel Majid Moncef | MAR | 3:41.73 (6 h4) | – (DNF h1) | – | |||
| AC h1 r2/3 | 947 | Peter Wirz | SUI | 3:41.26 (4 h4) | – (DNF h1) | – | |||
| 4 h2 r1/3 | 733 | Saïd Aouita | MAR | 3:42.18 (4 h2) | – (DNS h2) | – | |||
| 6 h2 r1/3 | 944 | Marco Rapp | SUI | 3:42.64 (6 h2) | – | – | |||
| 7 h1 r1/3 | 313 | Ari Suhonen |  FIN | 3:43.61 (7 h1) | – | – | |||
| 7 h2 r1/3 | 147 | Dave Campbell |  CAN | 3:42.97 (7 h2) | – | – | |||
| 7 h3 r1/3 | 115 | Joaquim Cruz |  BRA | 3:40.92 (7 h3) | – (DNS h1) | – | |||
| 7 h4 r1/3 | 1012 | Mahmoud El-Kalboussi |  TUN | 3:43.72 (7 h4) | – | – | |||
| 8 h1 r1/3 | 112 | Zequinha Barbosa | BRA | 3:44.46 (8 h1) | – | – | |||
| 8 h2 r1/3 | 891 | Mohamed Suleiman |  QAT | 3:44.43 (8 h2) | – | – | |||
| 8 h4 r1/3 | 23 | Dale Jones |  ANT | 3:51.22 (8 h4) | – | – | |||
| 9 h1 r1/3 | 1162 | Branko Zorko |  YUG | 3:45.52 (9 h1) | – | – | |||
| 9 h2 r1/3 | 200 | Duan Xiuquan |  CHN | 3:44.88 (9 h2) | – | – | |||
| 9 h4 r1/3 | 708 | Mohamed Barak Al-Dosari |  KSA | 3:51.53 (9 h4) | – | – | |||
| 10 h1 r1/3 | 97 | Mike Watson |  BER | 3:46.49 (10 h1) | – | – | |||
| 10 h2 r1/3 | 47 | Pat Scammell |  AUS | 3:45.21 (10 h2) | – | – | |||
| 10 h3 r1/3 | 554 | Gerry O'Reilly | IRL | 3:43.23 (10 h3) | – | – | |||
| 10 h4 r1/3 | 895 | Eulucane Ndagijimana |  RWA | 3:51.61 (10 h4) | – | – | |||
| 11 h1 r1/3 | 1172 | Melford Homela |  ZIM | 3:47.38 (11 h1) | – | – | |||
| 11 h2 r1/3 | 929 | Jama Aden |  SOM | 3:49.84 (11 h2) | – | – | |||
| 11 h3 r1/3 | 681 | Jo Jin-Saeng |  KOR | 3:45.63 (11 h3) | – | – | |||
| 11 h4 r1/3 | 12 | Josep Graells |  AND | 3:52.68 (11 h4) | – | – | |||
| 12 h1 r1/3 | 240 | Hoche Yaya Aden |  DJI | 3:51.56 (12 h1) | – | – | |||
| 12 h2 r1/3 | 839 | Ramón López |  PAR | 3:53.31 (12 h2) | – | – | |||
| 12 h3 r1/3 | 977 | Jan Kubista |  TCH | 3:46.41 (12 h3) | – | – | |||
| 12 h4 r1/3 | 1014 | Zeki Öztürk |  TUR | 3:54.26 (12 h4) | – | – | |||
| 13 h1 r1/3 | 16 | Eugénio Katombi |  ANG | 3:54.25 (13 h1) | – | – | |||
| 13 h2 r1/3 | 741 | Kenneth Dzekedzeke |  MAW | 4:02.61 (13 h2) | – | – | |||
| 13 h3 r1/3 | 292 | Moses Zarak Khan |  FIJ | 4:03.20 (13 h3) | – | – | |||
| 13 h4 r1/3 | 148 | Doug Consiglio | CAN | 3:55.31 (13 h4) | – | – | |||
| 14 h1 r1/3 | 917 | Modupe Jonah |  SLE | 3:55.15 (14 h1) | – | – | |||
| 14 h2 r1/3 | 488 | Bernardo Elonga |  GEQ | 4:16.40 (14 h2) | – | – | |||
| 14 h3 r1/3 | 1150 | Awad Saleh Ahmed |  YAR | 4:03.86 (14 h3) | – | – | |||
| 14 h4 r1/3 | 186 | Seid Gayaplé |  CHA | 3:58.46 (14 h4) | – | – | |||
| 15 h1 r1/3 | 780 | Mohamed Ould Khayar |  MTN | 4:12.18 (15 h1) | – | – | |||
| 15 h3 r1/3 | 807 | John Siguria |  PNG | 4:07.04 (15 h3) | – | – | |||
| 15 h4 r1/3 | 785 | Hari Rokaya |  NEP | 4:01.17 (15 h4) | – | – | |||
| 1193 | Nimley Twegbe |  LBR | – (DNS h2) | – | – |
Round One (29 September 1988)
Top five in each heat and next six fastest advanced to the semi-finals.
Heat One (15:15)
| Pos | Ord | Athlete | NOC | Time (A) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | Steve Cram | GBR | 3:40.89 | |||
| 2 | 8 | Steve Scott | USA | 3:41.57 | |||
| 3 | 14 | Rémy Geoffroy | FRA | 3:41.68 | |||
| 4 | 3 | Joseph Chesire | KEN | 3:41.72 | |||
| 5 | 10 | Gennaro Di Napoli | ITA | 3:41.85 | |||
| 6 | 7 | Marcus O'Sullivan | IRL | 3:42.01 | |||
| 7 | 5 | Ari Suhonen | FIN | 3:43.61 | |||
| 8 | 6 | Zequinha Barbosa | BRA | 3:44.46 | |||
| 9 | 11 | Branko Zorko | YUG | 3:45.52 | |||
| 10 | 9 | Mike Watson | BER | 3:46.49 | |||
| 11 | 12 | Melford Homela | ZIM | 3:47.38 | |||
| 12 | 15 | Hoche Yaya Aden | DJI | 3:51.56 | |||
| 13 | 4 | Eugénio Katombi | ANG | 3:54.25 | |||
| 14 | 1 | Modupe Jonah | SLE | 3:55.15 | |||
| 15 | 13 | Mohamed Ould Khayar | MTN | 4:12.18 |
Splits
| 400 m | 1:01 | – |  |
| 800 m | 2:02 | – | |
Heat Two (15:20)
| Pos | Ord | Athlete | NOC | Time (A) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | Kip Cheruiyot | KEN | 3:39.98 | |||
| 2 | 12 | Mark Deady | USA | 3:41.91 | |||
| 3 | 1 | Mogens Guldberg | DEN | 3:42.01 | |||
| 4 | 4 | Saïd Aouita | MAR | 3:42.18 | |||
| 5 | 14 | Mário Silva | POR | 3:42.24 | |||
| 6 | 10 | Marco Rapp | SUI | 3:42.64 | |||
| 7 | 8 | Dave Campbell | CAN | 3:42.97 | |||
| 8 | 3 | Mohamed Suleiman | QAT | 3:44.43 | |||
| 9 | 11 | Duan Xiuquan | CHN | 3:44.88 | |||
| 10 | 13 | Pat Scammell | AUS | 3:45.21 | |||
| 11 | 5 | Jama Aden | SOM | 3:49.84 | |||
| 12 | 9 | Ramón López | PAR | 3:53.31 | |||
| 13 | 7 | Kenneth Dzekedzeke | MAW | 4:02.61 | |||
| 14 | 15 | Bernardo Elonga | GEQ | 4:16.40 | |||
| 1193 | Nimley Twegbe | LBR | – |
Splits
| 400 m | 1:02.88 | Mogens Guldberg | |
| 800 m | 2:05.09 | Mohamed Suleiman | |
Heat Three (15:25)
| Pos | Ord | Athlete | NOC | Time (A) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 12 | Peter Rono | KEN | 3:37.65 | |||
| 2 | 5 | Jeff Atkinson | USA | 3:38.33 | |||
| 3 | 13 | Peter Elliott | GBR | 3:38.60 | |||
| 4 | 8 | Markus Hacksteiner | SUI | 3:39.05 | |||
| 5 | 2 | Moustafa Lachaal | MAR | 3:39.20 | |||
| 6 | 15 | Rachid Kram | ALG | 3:39.90 | |||
| 7 | 1 | Joaquim Cruz | BRA | 3:40.92 | |||
| 8 | 11 | Mbiganyi Thee | BOT | 3:41.97 | |||
| 9 | 3 | Spyros Spyrou | CYP | 3:42.32 | |||
| 10 | 14 | Gerry O'Reilly | IRL | 3:43.23 | |||
| 11 | 7 | Jo Jin-Saeng | KOR | 3:45.63 | |||
| 12 | 10 | Jan Kubista | TCH | 3:46.41 | |||
| 13 | 4 | Moses Zarak Khan | FIJ | 4:03.20 | |||
| 14 | 6 | Awad Saleh Ahmed | YAR | 4:03.86 | |||
| 15 | 9 | John Siguria | PNG | 4:07.04 |
Splits
| 400 m | 1:02.55 | John Siguria | |
| 800 m | 1:18.96 | Peter Elliott | |
Heat Four (15:30)
| Pos | Ord | Athlete | NOC | Time (A) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 6 | Jens-Peter Herold | GDR | 3:40.87 | |||
| 2 | 12 | Han Kulker | NED | 3:40.90 | |||
| 3 | 9 | Steve Crabb | GBR | 3:41.12 | |||
| 4 | 1 | Peter Wirz | SUI | 3:41.26 | |||
| 5 | 10 | Omer Khalifa | SUD | 3:41.46 | |||
| 6 | 4 | Abdel Majid Moncef | MAR | 3:41.73 | |||
| 7 | 2 | Mahmoud El-Kalboussi | TUN | 3:43.72 | |||
| 8 | 7 | Dale Jones | ANT | 3:51.22 | |||
| 9 | 3 | Mohamed Barak Al-Dosari | KSA | 3:51.53 | |||
| 10 | 14 | Eulucane Ndagijimana | RWA | 3:51.61 | |||
| 11 | 5 | Josep Graells | AND | 3:52.68 | |||
| 12 | 8 | Zeki Öztürk | TUR | 3:54.26 | |||
| 13 | 13 | Doug Consiglio | CAN | 3:55.31 | |||
| 14 | 11 | Seid Gayaplé | CHA | 3:58.46 | |||
| 15 | 15 | Hari Rokaya | NEP | 4:01.17 |
Splits
| 400 m | 1:01.04 | – | |
| 800 m | 2:02.03 | Steve Crabb | |
Semi-Finals (30 September 1988)
Top five in each heat and next two fastest advanced to the final.
Heat One (12:40)
| Pos | Ord | Athlete | NOC | Time (A) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 13 | Kip Cheruiyot | KEN | 3:38.09 | |||
| 2 | 12 | Steve Cram | GBR | 3:38.30 | |||
| 3 | 6 | Peter Elliott | GBR | 3:38.56 | |||
| 4 | 9 | Han Kulker | NED | 3:39.06 | |||
| 5 | 11 | Jeff Atkinson | USA | 3:39.12 | |||
| 6 | 1 | Joseph Chesire | KEN | 3:39.17 | |||
| 7 | 10 | Mogens Guldberg | DEN | 3:39.86 | |||
| 8 | 7 | Rémy Geoffroy | FRA | 3:40.96 | |||
| 9 | 3 | Rachid Kram | ALG | 3:41.39 | |||
| 10 | 2 | Spyros Spyrou | CYP | 3:43.49 | |||
| 4 | Abdel Majid Moncef | MAR | – | ||||
| 8 | Peter Wirz | SUI | – | ||||
| 115 | Joaquim Cruz | BRA | – |
Splits
| 400 m | 1:02.55 | Peter Wirz | |
| 800 m | 2:02.37 | Kip Cheruiyot | |
Heat Two (12:50)
| Pos | Ord | Athlete | NOC | Time (A) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 4 | Steve Scott | USA | 3:38.20 | |||
| 2 | 5 | Peter Rono | KEN | 3:38.25 | |||
| 3 | 1 | Omer Khalifa | SUD | 3:38.40 | |||
| 4 | 8 | Mário Silva | POR | 3:38.56 | |||
| 5 | 9 | Jens-Peter Herold | GDR | 3:38.59 | |||
| 6 | 6 | Marcus O'Sullivan | IRL | 3:38.84 | |||
| 7 | 2 | Markus Hacksteiner | SUI | 3:39.18 | |||
| 8 | 11 | Mark Deady | USA | 3:39.47 | |||
| 9 | 10 | Steve Crabb | GBR | 3:39.55 | |||
| 10 | 3 | Mbiganyi Thee | BOT | 3:42.62 | |||
| 11 | 7 | Gennaro Di Napoli | ITA | 3:43.58 | |||
| 12 | 12 | Moustafa Lachaal | MAR | 3:45.65 | |||
| 733 | Saïd Aouita | MAR | – |
Splits
| 400 m | 1:00.01 | Omer Khalifa | |
| 800 m | 2:00.83 | Peter Rono | |
Final (1 October 1988 — 13:10)
| Pos | Ord | Athlete | NOC | Time (A) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 4 | Peter Rono | KEN | 3:35.96 | |||
| 2 | 2 | Peter Elliott | GBR | 3:36.15 | |||
| 3 | 8 | Jens-Peter Herold | GDR | 3:36.21 | |||
| 4 | 1 | Steve Cram | GBR | 3:36.24 | |||
| 5 | 9 | Steve Scott | USA | 3:36.99 | |||
| 6 | 3 | Han Kulker | NED | 3:37.08 | |||
| 7 | 6 | Kip Cheruiyot | KEN | 3:37.94 | |||
| 8 | 5 | Marcus O'Sullivan | IRL | 3:38.39 | |||
| 9 | 10 | Mário Silva | POR | 3:38.77 | |||
| 10 | 11 | Jeff Atkinson | USA | 3:40.80 | |||
| 11 | 7 | Joseph Chesire | KEN | 3:40.82 | |||
| 12 | 12 | Omer Khalifa | SUD | 3:41.07 |
Splits
| 400 m | 1:00.04 | Han Kulker | |
| 800 m | 2:00.31 | Peter Rono | |