Former Afghan national taekwondo athlete Farzad Mansouri has won a silver medal at the Belgium Open taekwondo championship.

Speaking to TOLOnews, Mansouri said that he defeated opponents from France and the Netherlands to reach the final.

However, in the -80kg final match, he lost to his American opponent, missing out on the gold medal.

The 23-year-old athlete had also won a silver medal in the same competition last year.

The Belgium Open featured taekwondo athletes from around the world. Mansouri competed as part of the World Taekwondo Federation's Refugee Team.

He was a member of Afghanistan’s national taekwondo team for four years but sought asylum in the UK after the political changes in Afghanistan.