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Great Britain's Caden Cunningham had to settle for taekwondo Olympic silver after being beaten by Iran's Arian Salimi in the final of the men's +80kg category in Paris.
The 21-year-old from Huddersfield won the first round 6-3 but a snaking head kick from the Iranian in round two paved the way for a comprehensive response that set up a final round decider.
The pair remained neck-and-neck for much of a cagey contest but Salimi pulled away in the final 20 seconds to ensure victory for Iran.
Cunningham had battled past Cuba's former double world champion Rafael Alba and former Olympic champion Cheick Sallah Cisse of the Ivory Coast to reach an Olympic final at his first attempt.
It was the latest stage of a steep trajectory for Cunningham, who rebounded from his injury to win the World Grand Prix title in Italy in 2023, followed by European Games and European titles respectively.
Great Britain team-mate Rebecca McGowan missed out on a place on the podium when she was beaten by reigning heavyweight world champion Nafia Kus in their bronze medal match.
McGowan had recovered well from a comprehensive earlier defeat to Uzbekistan's Svetlana Osipova to bound through the repechage but despite taking the first round, she found her Turkish opponent too tough to crack.
She said: "In taekwondo the little things make the match. It's gutting. It's a little heart-breaking right now.
"Losing the review was a turning point but it's the sport I chose, the life I chose. At some point I have to deal with it and pick myself up."