Josh Buatsi: I Surpassed All Expectations - But I Wanted Gold!

Josh Buatsi cut a dejected figure despite surpassing expectations by securing an Olympic boxing bronze medal at Rio Centro on Tuesday.

The 23-year-old Londoner dropped a unanimous decision to Kazakhstan’s Adilbek Niyazymbetov in their light-heavyweight semi-final, bringing an end to his impressive run through the tournament.

Buatsi’s bronze took Britain to 48 medals in Rio – setting a new record for an overseas Games.

Buatsi had arrived at the Olympics as a relative notice but three straight wins – including a stunning stoppage of Uzbek veteran Elshod Rasulov – raised hopes he could continue his trajectory all the way to gold.

But Buatsi was frequently frustrated by his opponent’s spoiling tactics and after losing a tight first, in which he might have hoped his sharper left hands had caught the judges’ eyes, he was presented with a near-impossible task.

Buatsi said: “A bronze medal surpasses all expectations but once I got here and was winning I was aiming for gold and nothing else.

“I was frustrated and I showed it and I shouldn’t have done that. I know I am a very good fighter and this experience is only going to add to what I have already.”

Buatsi’s surprise success has come against a backdrop of relative struggle for the Great Britain team with a number of their medal chances suffering hard draws and going out early.