GB’s Cunningham narrowly beaten in taekwondo final

Caden Cunningham narrowly missed out on becoming the first British man to win Olympic taekwondo gold as he had to settle for +80kg silver in Paris.

The 21-year-old, appearing in his first Games, was beaten 2-1 in a tight contest by Iran’s Arian Salimi.

The Briton dropped to his knees and then sat on the mat as the clock ticked down, before the pair raised one another’s hands above their heads and thanked the crowd.

It was an even fight – Cunningham won the first of the three rounds but Salimi dominated the second, before finding a crucial head kick late in the third to secure victory.

Cunningham’s silver ensures Britain continue their record of winning an Olympic taekwondo medal at every Games since Athens 2004.

“If I stay in this, I will be the king of taekwondo in the next four years,” Cunningham told BBC Sport.

“One fight does not define me as a fighter.

“It is the start of whatever I want it to be.”

The silver came shortly after GB’s Rebecca McGowan narrowly lost out to Turkey’s Nafia Kus Aydin in the +67kg bronze-medal match.

Cunningham will be able to take comfort from the way he came through a difficult draw in Paris. He beat Tokyo bronze medallist Rafael Alba in the quarter-finals, followed by world champion and 2016 Rio gold medallist Cheick Sallah Cisse in the last four.

While he may be disappointed with silver, there are high hopes for Cunningham, with two-time Olympic bronze medallist Bianca Walkden describing him as the “future of the sport”.

Aged 10, Cunningham decided to find a sport he would excel at and win an Olympic medal in, opting for taekwondo after a conversation with his dad, a former champion kickboxer.

He won his first senior medal aged just 17, claiming -87kg silver at the Spanish Open in April 2021.

Since then, he has added European +87kg gold – which he won on his debut at the event in May this year – to his tally, along with gold in last year’s Rome Grand Prix and silver in Paris.

Cunningham suffered a six-month lay-off in 2022 after tearing his anterior cruciate ligament in the first round of the World Championships.

Remarkably, he continued the fight – and won.

A part-time model, he cuts a relaxed figure and was quick to praise his opponent after the fight.

“He is a very nice guy. I’ve no problem losing to a guy who was better than me on the day, and he was,” he told BBC Sport.

“I didn’t get the gold for myself, my coach and my family but I am very proud to be here today.

“I just want to see my parents, maybe go home and have a KFC or something.”

Scot McGowan had been left devastated after her quarter-final loss to Svetlana Osipova of Uzbekistan earlier on Saturday.

However, Osipova progressed to the final, meaning McGowan was able to go into the repechage and fight for a chance at bronze.

She easily beat Astan Bathily of the Ivory Coast 2-0 to set up a bronze-medal match.

Tied at 1-1 going into the final round, McGowan thought she had delivered a winning head kick but it had only caught the arm of Aydin, who held out to secure the medal.

“My heart is broken twice tonight but I’m really proud of myself being able to pick myself up and fight how I did,” McGowan told BBC Sport.

“It is gutting and it feels like a bit of a heartbreak right now but it is the sport and life I chose.”