The 21-year-old from Dorset (pictured top), who is the reigning European champion, proved one of the biggest stories in the lead up to London 2012 after he was surprisingly overlooked by GB Taekwondo for its sole selection place in the -80kg men's category in favour of Lutalo Muhammad, the then-world number 59.

Muhammad went on to claim a bronze medal at the Olympics but Cook, who conducts his training outside the GB Taekwondo set-up, claimed his omission was down to internal politics.

And it has now emerged that Cook has made initial overtures towards the United States and France about representing them at international level.

"I should have been fighting there [at London 2012]," he told BBC Radio 5 live.

"I am extremely bitter, I am extremely disappointed and that will never go away.

"It should have been me.

"This decision is going to be with me for the rest of my life and I don't think I will ever be on speaking terms with the selectors."

Lutalo Muhammad, who was controversially selected for the London 2012 Olympics ahead of Aaron Cook, went on to win a bronze medal in the -80 kg men’s category

GB Taekwondo says it hopes to rebuild relations with Cook, despite his sour feelings towards them.

"We are about to try to open discussions, but we don't know what the reception will be," said GB Taekwondo performance director Gary Hall.

"We're pretty keen to work with Aaron.

"We'll go into discussions with an open mind.

"It might mean that he doesn't come back into the academy, but we have an arrangement where we work together."

But such a compromise seems unlikely for Cook, who has also contacted the World Taekwondo Federation (WTF) about competing as an independent athlete for future events.

Competing as an independent athlete is an option for Cook in WTF events but not at the Olympic Games, where such concessions are typically only offered to athletes whose parent countries are not recognised by the International Olympic Committee (IOC).

Therefore, if Cook wants to compete at Rio 2016, he will likely need to rebuild relations with GB Taekwondo or switch nationalities.

However, switching nationalities could include a two-year absence from international competition, meaning Cook would need to make a move before the summer of 2014.

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