| Final | time | gap | | 1. Alex Baumann |  Canada | 2:02.29 | GR | | 2. Alexandr Sidorenko |  Soviet Union | 2:04.21 | +1.92s | | 3. Ricardo Prado |  Brazil | 2:05.50 | +2.79s | | 4. Vladimir Tkachenko | Soviet Union | 2:07.4? | +5.1?s | | 5. Cameron Reid | Canada | 2:07.99 | +5.70s | | 6. Roger Von Jouanne |  United States | 2:08.35 | +6.06s | | 7. Mark Rhodenbaugh | United Staaes | 2:10.14 | +7.85s | | 8. Keiichi Ohata |  Japan | 2:10.64 | +7.35s |
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Games Record: Sergei Fesenko, Soviet Union 2:06.34 Bucuresti, Romania 1981
Heats - Thursday, 7th July |
| Heat 1 | time | Rk | | 1. Cameron Reid | Canada | 2:08.53 | 5. | | 2. Kai Vander Bosch |  West Germany | 2:11.46 | 10. | | 3. Mauirizio Divano |  Italy | 2:12.31 | 13. | | 4. Dariusz Wolny | Soviet Union | 2:12.87 | 15. | | 5. Leonardus Sttenbrink |  Netherlands | 2:13.51 | 16. | | 7. Vasco Sousa |  Portugal | 2:13.55 | 17. |
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| Heat 2 | time | Rk | | 1. Ricardo Prado | Brazil | 2:07.46 | 3. | | 2. Vladimir Tkachenko | Soviet Union | 2:08.02 | 4. | | 3. Marco Colombo | Italy | 2:11.62 | 12. | | 4. Li Zhongyi |  China | 2:14.72 | 19. | | 5. Robly Garcia Marquez |  Cuba | 2:19.70 | 25. |
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| Heat 3 | time | Rk | | 1. Alexandr Sidorenko | Soviet Union | 2:06.34 | 2. | | 2. Mark Rhodenbaugh | United Staaes | 2:10.52 | 7. | | 3. Keiichi Ohata | Japan | 2:10.81 | 8. | | 4. Leszek Gorski |  Poland | 2:11.62 | 12. | | 5. Anthony Mosse |  New Zealand | 2:14.72 | 19. | | 6. Jean-Philippe Riblet |  France | 2:15.60 | 22. | | 7. Samir Bouchlagem |  Tunisia | 2:18.11 | 23. | | 8. Richard Lockhart | New Zealand | 2:23.73 | 26. |
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| Heat 4 | time | Rk | | 1. Alex Baumann | Canada | 2:05.41 | GR 1. | | 2. Roger Von Jouanne | United States | 2:09.60 | 6. | | 3. Qin Chen | China | 2:10.84 | 9. | | 4. Satoshi Tsukamoto | Japan | 2:11.54 | 11. | | 5. Axel Seusel | West Germany | 2:12.62 | 14. | | 6. Maviael Sampaio Neto | Brazil | 2:14.29 | 18. | | 7. Kim Terrell |  Australia | 2:15.53 | 21. | | 8. Jim Furrer |  Switzerland | 2:19.52 | 24. |
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