British boxer Ben Whittaker has come under fire for refusing to wear his Olympic medal on the podium because he ‘only’ came in second place.
The 24-year-old missed out on the gold after been beaten by Cuba’s Arlen Lopez in a split decision on Wednesday night. Footage from the medal ceremony shows him sulkily collecting his medal without even looking up and shoving it into his pocket.
He grudgingly held the medal up for official photographs but refused to wear it on the podium alongside the other winners. Other pictures from the night show him in tears over the result.
While the boxer bore no ill will against Arlen, he was adamant that he considered coming second a personal failure. He told the Mail Online: ‘Yeah, so I didn’t win gold.
Read more on evoke.ie