Athletics at the 2016 Summer Olympics – Women's 800 metres

Women's 800 metres at the Games of the XXXI Olympiad
Interior view of the Estádio Olímpico João Havelange, where the Women's 800m took place.
Venue	Olympic Stadium
Dates	17 August 2016 (heats) 18 August 2016 (semifinals) 20August 2016 (final)
Winning time	1:55.28 NR
Medalists
01 ! Caster Semenya  South Africa 02 ! Francine Niyonsaba  Burundi 03 ! Margaret Wambui  Kenya
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01 !		Caster Semenya	South Africa
02 !		Francine Niyonsaba	Burundi
03 !		Margaret Wambui	Kenya

The women's 800 metres event at the 2016 Summer Olympics took place between 17–20 August at the Olympic Stadium.

As the final started, Caster Semenya running in lane 3 gained a slight edge on the turn, deceptive as Margaret Wambui was the slowest around the turn. Francine Niyonsaba converged from lane 5 and the two assumed the lead down the backstretch. Semenya assumed the curb as they began the turn, Niyonsaba on her outside shoulder with Maryna Arzamasava behind Niyonsaba, Melissa Bishop and Lynsey Sharp stacking up behind Semenya. In the second 200, Margaret Wambui moved to the outside of lane 2 and ran up to Arzamasava's shoulder. The first lap was an honest 57.59. Midway through the penultimate turn, Niyonsaba edged in front of Semenya, the other runners collapsing into lane 1 rather than following her around the now open outside. Down the backstretch, Niyonsaba opened a 2 metre lead, with Bishop cuing up tight behind Semenya, with Arzamasava boxing her to the outside, while Arzamasava was being boxed by a faster moving Wambui. Kicker Joanna Jóźwik was trailing the field eight metres back of Niyonsaba. After the final turn had started, Semenya drifted to the outside and put it in gear, moving from 2 metres behind Niyonsaba to 2 metres in front. During the home stretch she just extended her lead to an 8 metre victory. Still in second, Niyonsaba had a 2 metre gap on Bishop with Wambui on her outside. Down the homestretch Niyonsaba also extended her gap to about four metres. Wambui down a metre on the outside of Bishop, couldn't make any progress to gain any group until the last 40 metres, when she finally pulled aside and then past for the bronze medal by a metre.

For Semenya, her 1:55.28 was a new South African National Record, a .05 improvement over the mark she set a month earlier at Herculis. For Bishop it was also a Canadian National Record, improving upon the mark she set the same day as Semenya in Edmonton. Semenya becomes the fifth woman to win two medals in the Women's Olympic 800. After the expected disqualification of Mariya Savinova from 2012 is completed, she will become the first two time gold medalist.