| Dates | 17 September – 2 October 1988 |
|---|---|
| Medal Events | 2 |
| Venues | Jam-sil Che-yuk-gwan, Seoul Sports Complex, Seoul / Che-yuk-gwan, Han-yang Dae-hak-gyo, Seoul / Saemaul Sports Hall, Seoul |
The men’s tournament was expanded to 12 teams for the first time since 1972, as there were only a few boycotting nations in 1988. A rule change occurred shortly before the 1988 Olympics. Previously all sets had been played to 15, but were extended to allow a team to win by 2 points. Now the set would always end at a maximum of 17 points, even if the score was 17-16.
| Event | Status | Date | Participants | NOCs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Volleyball, Men | Olympic | 17 September – 2 October 1988 | 143 | 12 |
| Volleyball, Women | Olympic | 21 – 29 September 1988 | 95 | 8 |
| 238 (143/95) | 15 (12/8) |
| Event | Gold | Silver | Bronze | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Volleyball, Men | United States |  USA |
Soviet Union |  URS |
Argentina |  ARG |
| Volleyball, Women | Soviet Union | URS |
Peru |  PER |
People's Republic of China |  CHN |
| NOC | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Soviet Union | URS |
1 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| United States | USA |
1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Peru | PER |
0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Argentina | ARG |
0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| People's Republic of China | CHN |
0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
