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The mixed medley and triathlon teams produced winning performances but it was heartache for world champion sprinter Dina Asher-Smith. Having failed to reach the 100m final, she later said she would drop out of the 200m because of a hamstring injury.

Super Saturday saw swimmers Kathleen Dawson, Adam Peaty, James Guy and Anna Hopkin combine to take gold in the 4x100m mixed medley relay.

They recorded the fastest-ever time of 3:37.58 to win a fourth British gold medal in the pool ‑ the most at a single Olympics since 1908.

It was Peaty’s second gold of the Games and the fourth Olympic win of his career. The 26-year-old said: “I never thought I’d have four Olympic medals. That is my 14th world record. I hope this team and the rest of British swimming get the recognition they deserve.

“There’s no point doing any of this if we’re not inspiring people. That’s what the Olympics is about, right? To do better and chase dreams.”

Guy, 25, also added a second Olympic title after enjoying victory in the 4x200m freestyle relay.

He said: “To do this with my best mates ‑ amazing. And we are all Northerners.”

His father Andrew already knows what his son will want to do when he lands at Heathrow tomorrow.

“The first thing he’ll do when we pick him up is say, ‘Dad, I need a curry’,” Andrew said.

“He only ever has one curry ‑ chicken korma. And it’s not even really curry, is it? That’s all he ever has. Crazy. Rice and two chapatis, that’s it.

“He will put a bit of weight on but do you know what? He’s entitled to it.”

Kathleen Dawson, 23, said “I hope this is an inspiration for the next generation of female swimmers coming through.” They both paid tribute to the Peaty effect and how he had given them belief. Anna Hopkin, 25, said: “I train with him every day so I know how good he is. He gives the whole team confidence.”

Guy added: “At the end I was like ‘Please, please, please’ and then when the win was confirmed on the scoreboard, I just went ‘Yeeeeaah’.”

Jonny Brownlee won his first gold medal in his final Olympic race as Great Britain won the triathlon mixed relay.

After claiming bronze in London nine years ago and silver in Rio behind his brother Alistair, Brownlee said it was a “dream come true”.

After an excellent first leg from Jess Learmonth, 33, he broke away from his rivals. Then individual silver medallists Georgia Taylor-Brown, 27, and Alex Yee, 23, maintained the advantage to claim the gold medal. Brownlee, 31, said: “It feels absolutely amazing. It’s my third Olympics and I finally walk away with gold.

“If someone had told me at the start of my career I’d have three Olympic medals and three different colours I’d have taken that. To finally get a gold, I’m quite emotional. I keep on trying to get gold medals. Alistair has won two so far and to go home with one now is super special.

“It’s also the first-ever mixed team relay in triathlon so we’ve made history.

“It’s capped off my Olympic career amazingly.”

Many other sports are now looking at developing the mixed team format of men and women competing together.

Meanwhile, Daryll Neita finished last in the women’s 100m final yesterday, after qualifying by the slenderest of margins. The 24-year-old, who came third in the British Championships in June, had edged out Trinidad and Tobago’s Michelle Lee Ahye by one thousandth of a second to secure her spot.

The race was won by Jamaica’s Elaine Thompson-Herah in an Olympic record of 10.61sec.

The one bitterly disappointing note on Day 8 was the loss of Daryll’s team-mate Asher-Smith, 25.

She revealed that she had injured a hamstring at the 100m national trial in June. But after getting a second medical opinion, thought that she would be able to compete in the Olympics.

After failing to qualify for the final she broke down in tears during a television interview.

She said: “I have been dreaming about this for so long. There are so many talented athletes who could have run. I would never have tried unless I thought that I could do it.”

Emma Wilson claimed Team GB’s first sailing medal of the Games with a windsurfing bronze at Enoshima Bay.

Wilson’s mother Penny Way competed in two Olympics, finishing sixth at Barcelona 1992 and seventh four years later at Atlanta.

Those achievements led to her local council renaming the road to Christchurch Windsurfing Club ‑ where Emma, 2, learnt to surf as a youngster ‑ in her honour.

Boxer Karriss Artingstall, 26, a gunner in the Royal Horse Artillery, rounded off a fine day for Team GB.

The Macclesfield featherweight won bronze to help keep Britain in sixth place in the Olympic medal table.

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