WELSH taekwondo star Lauren Williams had to settle for a silver on her Olympic debut after losing 25-22 to Croatia’s Matea Jelic in the -67kg final at Tokyo 2020.

Williams, whose medal is Wales’s first of the Games, led 21-15 with 19 seconds to go before the reigning European champion fought back in the closing stages.

Blackwood’s Williams, 22, is her country’s second Olympic medallist in taekwondo, following in the footsteps of two-time champion Jade Jones.

It was a high tempo affair from the off, with Williams taking a 5-4 lead into the second round.

The two traded head shots early in round two and the duo were all square at 10-10 going into the third.

Williams cranked up the pressure on her opponent and opened up a six-point advantage with less than 20 seconds to go.

However, the Croat scored 10 unanswered points late on to take the gold medal away from Williams.

“It’s not enough,” said Williams. “I know it’s not enough.

“I had her and just let it go. I messed up. I made a mistake.

“It’s on me. I couldn’t do much about it.

“I didn’t come here to lose, I went out there to win.

“I can pretty confidently say I tried my best in that situation, but it just didn’t happen on the day.

“I’m very happy with how I performed all day, it’s just a shame she got it in the last 10 seconds.

“But an Olympic silver medal’s not bad, is it?"

She added: “I’ve not had the best preparation at all, but that’s not an excuse.

“I felt good coming here today.

“I had a thing at home where I had to come out a bit late which damaged my preparation.

“But as soon as I got here I hit the ground running and I was pretty confident going into today, so I’m happy.

“It’s been absolutely crazy. For my first Olympic Games, it has been insane. A very good experience."