Four nations won medals in biathlon, East Germany leading the medal table with two gold medals, and the Soviet Union winning the most medals with 4 (1 gold, 2 silver, 1 bronze). Frank-Peter Roetsch won both individual gold medals, while Valeriy Medvedtsev won three medals, two silvers in the individual events and gold in the relay.
Italy's two medals were the first in biathlon for the country.
Twenty-two nations sent biathletes to compete in the events. Below is a list of the competing nations; in parentheses are the number of national competitors.[1] Guam and Puerto Rico sent biathletes to the Olympics for the first (and as of 2024, only) time.