Olympic taekwondo: Caden Cunningham takes men’s +80kg silver after losing to Iran’s Arian Salimi

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 proud record of winning an Olympic taekwondo medal at every Games since Athens 2004.

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