Though Jinson's timing

would have given him gold at Rio, this particular Olympics final was unusually slow owing to a highly tactical race in which no one pushed the pace, choosing instead to reserve energy for a sprint finish. The heats and semifinals saw faster timings.

Centrowitz's timing would not have won him a medal in the preceding five Olympics. Excluding Rio, the slowest timing to win bronze in the event in the preceding five Olympics is 3:36.72 at Atlanta 1996.