West Germany's Steffi Graf defeated Argentina's Gabriela Sabatini in the final, 6–3, 6–3 to win the gold medal in Women's Singles tennis at the 1988 Summer Olympics. With the win, Graf completed the Golden Slam, having also won all four majors earlier in 1988. The final was a rematch of the U.S. Open final earlier that year, where Graf also prevailed to complete the Grand Slam. The United States' Zina Garrison and Bulgaria's Manuela Maleeva-Fragnière won the bronze medals. It was the first medal in the event for West Germany, Argentina, and Bulgaria, while the United States had previously earned medals in both of its prior appearances in 1900 and 1924.

Stefanie Maria Graf is a German former professional tennis player. She won 22 major singles titles, the second-most in women's singles won since the start of the Open Era in 1968 and the third-most of all-time. In 1988, Graf became the first tennis player to achieve the Golden Slam by winning all four major singles titles and the Olympic gold medal in the same calendar year. She is the only tennis player, male or female, to have won each major singles tournament at least four times.