Great Britain taekwondo fighter Martin Stamper narrowly lost his bronze medal fight against Afghan Rohullah Nikpah in the men's under-68kgs at ExCeL.
Liverpudlian Stamper, 25, had progressed to the semi-finals, but despite a battling effort he was beaten 9-6 by Turkish top seed Servet Tazegul, the 2011 world champion and European champion, a bronze medallist from Beijing.
The Briton walked out to a raucous welcome at South Arena 1, but there was also plenty of support for Nikpah, who had become a national hero when he collected Afghanistan's first Olympic medal with his bronze four years ago.
Stamper, bronze medallist at the 2011 World Championships, edged ahead with a kick to the body and led 1-0 after the first round.
However, the Afghan, ranked eighth in the world, landed a three-point head kick, but Stamper pulled it back to 3-2 with a score on the buzzer.
Stamper needed treatment after an awkward fall and then trailed by 4-2 going into the last minute.
The Briton felt he connected with a head shot in the dying seconds, which went to appeal, but was rejected as Nikpah celebrated another Olympic success.