| 1981 European Athletics Indoor Championships | ||
|---|---|---|
 | ||
| Track events | ||
| 50 m | men | women |
| 400 m | men | women |
| 800 m | men | women |
| 1500 m | men | women |
| 3000 m | men | |
| 50 m hurdles | men | women |
| 5000 m walk | men | |
| Field events | ||
| High jump | men | women |
| Pole vault | men | |
| Long jump | men | women |
| Triple jump | men | |
| Shot put | men | women |
The men's 800 metres event at the 1981 European Athletics Indoor Championships was held on 21 and 22 February. [1] [2]
| Gold | Silver | Bronze |
Herbert Wursthorn  West Germany | Andras Paróczai  Hungary | Antonio Páez  Spain |
First 2 from each heat (Q) and the next 2 fastest (q) qualified for the semifinals.
| Rank | Heat | Name | Nationality | Time | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | András Paróczai | Hungary | 1:47.93 | Q |
| 2 | 1 | Herbert Wursthorn | West Germany | 1:48.58 | Q |
| 3 | 2 | Thomas Wilking | West Germany | 1:48.60 | Q |
| 4 | 2 | Detlef Wagenknecht |  East Germany | 1:48.69 | q |
| 5 | 1 | Antonio Páez |  Spain | 1:49.18 | Q |
| 6 | 1 | Andreas Busse | East Germany | 1:49.45 | q |
| 7 | 2 | Mike Whittingham |  Great Britain | 1:49.51 | |
| 8 | 2 | Rui Fernandes |  Portugal | 1:49.81 | |
| 9 | 1 | József Bereczki | Hungary | 1:49.98 | |
| 10 | 1 | Binko Kolev |  Bulgaria | 1:51.55 | |
| 2 | Andrés Ballbé | Spain | DNF | ||
| 1 | Hans-Peter Ferner | West Germany | DNS |
| Rank | Name | Nationality | Time | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Herbert Wursthorn | West Germany | 1:47.70 | |
 | András Paróczai | Hungary | 1:47.73 | |
 | Antonio Páez | Spain | 1:48.31 | |
| 4 | Andreas Busse | East Germany | 1:48.82 | |
| 5 | Detlef Wagenknecht | East Germany | 1:48.87 | |
| 6 | Thomas Wilking | West Germany | 1:49.49 |
