23-year-old CJ Nickolas was Team USA’s best hope to earn an Olympic medal in Men’s Taekwondo in Paris. Nickolas was among the favorites, as the first U.S. athlete to win a world championship medal since 2009. The welterweight also entered the Paris Olympics as the second-ranked welterweight in the world. His quest? To fulfill his mother’s dream of winning an Olympic medal.

However, the martial artist faltered against the eventual gold medalist Firas Katoussi on Friday. However, despite his semifinal loss, the first-time Olympian advanced to one of the bronze medal matches. His final glimmer of hope for earning an Olympic medal got snuffed out in the second round against Italian rival Simone Alessio. Yet, back home, the U.S. fans were not happy.

After the match, furious fans took to social media to raise their voice against what felt was an unfair win for Alessio. So what transpired in the bronze medal that attracted the ire of Nickolas’ fans? CJ Nickolas started the bout on the front foot, taking the initiative and playing the role of the aggressor. Meanwhile, his fellow welterweight took more of a counter-attacking approach.

The Olympian’s early offensive approach worked as he bagged two points, but the Italian recovered. Despite being defensive, the martial artist found sunk in counterattacks that helped him end the round on an even 3-3. Fans saw the Team USA member as more active with his kicks, constantly hunting for an opening.

Despite the aggression, it was Alessio who charged ahead with a two-point lead in round 2. However, the moment that pushed US taekwondo fans over the edge came late in round two. Coach Gareth Brown challenged one of Alessio’s high kicks, but the judges ruled against it as the kick didn’t violate any rules. The decision sealed CJ Nickolas’ fate, but that didn’t mean fans accepted it.

For the U.S. audience, CJ Nickolas was the better martial artist

The Team USA supporters cried foul on X. “Yeah, CJ Nikolas just got SCREWED. What ‘touches’ did the other fighter get? He was flicking his leg at CJ’s leg, whereas CJ was getting at him AND touching with more techniques. SCREWJOB!” posted a passionate and furious netizen. The individual made it clear that he didn’t agree with the judges and Alessio’s counterattacking style.

While the Italian did score hits to the body, the fan argued that Nickolas did the same and should’ve earned points for his aggression and variation. Another individual had the same question. “HOW CJ NIKOLAS DIDN’T WIN?!!!!” the netizen asked, but unfortunately didn’t get any answers. Yet, CJ Nickolas’ aggression may have been his undoing in the long run.

While these fans argued that the taekwondo practitioner landed more hits, the judges may not have seen the kicks as clean strikes. Meanwhile, the Italian utilized his patience to sneak in strikes that landed cleanly on the American’s torso. The combatants are no strangers and have faced one another four times in the past. They’ve even trained together, so the 2023 world champion knew what the 23-year-old could bring to the table.

Yet some were convinced CJ Nickolas got robbed. “I absolutely thought CJ was the better Taekwondo-ka in this fight. Don’t agree with the outcome at all,” commented another X-user, and she wasn’t the only one. Others also thought the officials messed up. “Bruh, I’m still mad about it and that ref called round 1 before the clock even hit zero,” wrote an individual.

“The dude was out of bounds before the clock ran out,” he also added. The judging at the Paris Olympics has come under fire repeatedly. In fact, the officials bumping down Romanian gymnast Ana Barbosu and giving Jordan Chile the floor exercise bronze medal have sparked an international controversy. So these fans were convinced that the Italian didn’t deserve to win.

While others were not so direct with their challenge, they remained skeptical. “I’ll watch again. If he got hit more times, then it’s fair. But from the angles I saw, CJ won. He had more varied techniques and FIGHTING SPIRIT,” commented a martial arts enthusiast. However, CJ Nickolas didn’t have any regrets.

“I believed in myself, and I put the raw version of myself out there for everybody to see. It was a massive risk, and I failed. I came up short,” the 23-year-old told media after his loss. However, with that being said, the young athlete is going back to the drawing board. His mother’s dream is yet to be fulfilled, and the 2028 Olympics will take place in his backyard.