Taekwondo: Cook misses golden opportunity

(GETTY IMAGES)

Aaron Cook was denied the chance to fight for a taekwondo gold medal by a refereeing mistake, according to his coach.

The 17-year-old was locked at 5-5 with Italy's Mauro Sarmiento when both fighters launched a final attack with seconds to the end of their semi-final.

Cook thought he had scored but when the pair split the scoreboard gave the bout to the Italian 6-5.

Cook's coach Nelson Miller said: "I'm not happy because from my point of view it was after the bell. The referee didn't want to make the call. It was pointless to have a discussion with them.

"The referee made a mistake but that was the best performance ever by Aaron Cook. I'm not disappointed."

Cook, from Dorchester but who trains at Manchester taekwondo academy, will now fight for the bronze.

He said: "I'm absolutely gutted. Fair play to him. I thought I had him right at the end but that's the way the sport works. I thought I got him in the corner but the judges didn't."