The possessor of a Masters Degree from Cambridge University, Baddeley established himself as a possible medal contender when he won the Golden Mile at the Bislet Games in June, knocking two seconds off his personal best.
Baddeley puts his improvement down to his decision to train in Australia with the likes of 5,000m star Craig Mottram.
Expecting the 26-year-old Harrow runner to win in Beijing might be going too far, but Baddeley's personal best is comparable to the times such championship races are usually won in, and he is well aware of the British tradition he has to live up to.
Sebastian Coe was the last British man to win a medal in the 800 metres with his silver in Los Angeles in 1984, while Peter Elliott's silver in 1988 was the last success over 1500m.
African athletes have generally dominated since the glory days of the early 1980s, although Russia's Yuriy Borzakovskiy is the current Olympic champion.
Baddeley was 9th in the World Championships 1500m in Japan last year after becoming the first British athlete to make a World Final for 10 years. He also reached the European and Commonwealth finals in 2006.
An asthmatic with a heart condition - he suffers from cardiac arrhythmia, which means the heart can start racing for no apparent reason - Baddeley insists his illness will not hinder his chances despite being fitted with a heart monitor.
"Once they diagnosed me I was fairly happy to carry on provided the condition wasn't worsening," he said.
"I do have the palpitation episodes once or twice a month but that's the only time it affects me. I have to sit down and take one or two deep breaths, one or two breathing exercises I can do to force the heart back into its natural rhythm.
"Initially it was very scary but now I know what it is it doesn't seem out of the ordinary for me. It's not something I worry about before the race. It's something I've got used to. I just carry on. I hope it doesn't happen and if it does I deal with it and just carry on."
