This was the 25th appearance of the event, which has been held at every Summer Olympics except 1908 (when there was a foil display only rather than a medal event). Two of the eight quarterfinalists from 2004 returned: gold medalist Brice Guyart of France, silver medalist (and 2000 quarterfinalist) Salvatore Sanzo of Italy, bronze medalist Andrea Cassarà of Italy, sixth-place finisher Peter Joppich of Germany, and eighth-place finisher Richard Kruse of Great Britain. Sanzo had won the 2001 and 2005 World Championships; Joppich had won in 2003, 2006, and 2007. The runner-up in Joppich's latest two titles, Andrea Baldini of Italy, had tested positive for a banned diuretic and could not compete (though he was later cleared and competed in 2012). This made Joppich a heavy favorite.
