Jamie Cooke claims European gold and Olympic qualification

Cooke finished 14th in the 2016 Rio Olympics

Great Britain's Jamie Cooke won the men's individual gold at the European Championships in Bath to secure a Tokyo 2020 Olympic qualification spot.

Cooke, 28, came home first in the final laser run discipline to finish on 1,477 points and add the European crown to his 2018 World Championship title.

Britain's Joseph Choong, who won the World Cup Final in June, was fourth.

France's Valentin Prades finished 13 points behind Cooke in second, with Czech Martin Vlach in third.

Choong missed out on a podium finish by 11 points, as he finished ahead of fifth-placed Czech Jan Kuf.

Cooke led throughout the day, setting the fastest swimming time and following up with his "best fence of all time" before protecting his lead in the riding discipline.

A 16-second advantage going into the decisive run-shoot was too great for his rivals to overcome as Cooke claimed a dominant win.

"It's been pretty much a perfect day for me," said Cooke.

"The fencing for me was a bit of a highlight - everything came together on the day and I kind of couldn't lose a hit, it was almost comical at one point. I made it slightly difficult for myself on the second shoot but I ran well so I'm really pleased."

Cooke also won team gold alongside Choong and Tom Toolis, who was 15th. Sam Curry, the fourth Briton in action, was 31st.

The top eight finishers automatically qualify for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, while Choong had already qualified due to his World Cup Final success.

Britain's Myles Pillage and Kerenza Bryson won gold in the mixed relay event on Tuesday before Pillage teamed up with Oliver Murray to triumph in the men's relay on Wednesday.