The problem with the study is it includes match play vs. single event situations. In match play, the Bronze medal winner(s) are coming off a victory while the Silver medal winner(s) are coming off a loss, which of course affects the human outcome because the Silver medalist thinks, I should have won the Gold while the Bronze medalist is just happy to not finish in 4th with no medal. What you really need to see is the Bronze medal winner(s) after losing the semi-final match and thus eliminating the chance for gold. The only people sadder than that is the semi-final loser that loses in the Bronze medal match. I would bet the single event situations produce far different results than the match play, something I didn't see the study single out.