This was the 21st appearance of the event, which is one of 12 athletics events to have been held at every Summer Olympics. Four finalists from 1984 returned: gold medalist Roger Kingdom of the United States, fourth-place finisher Mark McKoy of Canada, sixth-place finisher Stéphane Caristan of France, and seventh-place finisher Carlos Sala of Spain.
This was the 21st time the event occurred at the Summer Olympics, one of 12 athletics events that have been included in every Games. Four medalists from the previous Olympics returned: gold medalist Roger Kingdom of the United States, fourth-place finisher Mark McKoy of Canada, sixth-place finisher Stéphane Caristan of France, and seventh-place finisher Carlos Sala of Spain.