A Great Britain boxer has refused to wear his silver medal after being beaten in the gold medal match at the Tokyo Olympics.
Men's light-heavyweight fighter Ben Whittaker was shattered when he lost a split decision to Cuba's Arlen Lopez, though the result seemed fair; even flattering to the Briton, given that his opponent was the perpetual aggressor.
Whittaker covered his face with his hands after Lopez was named the winner and quickly left the ring. He cut a shattered figure at the medal ceremony, refusing to put on his silver medal and holding it limply for photographs, before putting it in his pocket.
"At the time, I should have taken it on the chin and put the beautiful silver medal around my neck and just smiled," he said later.
"I did not want silver, I lost the gold. So to me it's failure, so I am not going to celebrate silver at the moment."
Lopez, 28, is a former middleweight world champion and was the gold medallist in that division at the Rio 2016 Olympics. He continued on Cuba's mighty tradition in the amateur ranks in Tokyo and most felt that he should have been awarded a unanimous decision over Whittaker.
Lopez stalked Whittaker from the outset at Kokugikan Arena, dictating terms as the more experienced fighter. The Briton, 24, could not find a way to change the fight and duly lost in a clear result. At one stage, Lopez even beckoned a subdued Whittaker towards him.
Lopez dropped to his knees and banged the canvas when named the winner. He put a finger to his lips after receiving his gold medal, saying that the silencing gesture was meant for "those who were against me or thought that I would not be able to make it or lacked motivation".
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from WWOS https://wwos.nine.com.au/olympics/tokyo-olympics-2021-boxer-refuses-to-wear-silver-medal-ben-whittaker/490f3b0c-f018-4509-9f4f-d753491f167f
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