No fingertip near-miss this time, though still plenty of nervy nails chewed. But after first Adam Peaty and then Matthew Richards missed out on successive nights by no sort of margin at all, Britain finally struck Olympics gold in the pool, the men’s 4x200m freestylers eventually leaving the rest of the world trailing for the second Games in a row.
In triumph here at the aptly-named La Defense Arena, Duncan Scott, James Guy, Tom Dean and Richards made history as the first British swimmers ever to successfully defend an Olympic relay title, and the first from anywhere to do so as an unchanged team.
Before victory in Tokyo, Britain had waited 112 years for a gold medal in an event that had become America’s preserve. Now, they’ve won it twice in three.
This was a tighter, tenser affair, Britain in front at every changeover but never by much, until Scott finally cracked the Americans on a magnificent final leg swam in 1:43.95, with Australia taking bronze.
There was pressure here, no doubt, on a quartet left as Team GB’s standout hope for swimming gold after Peaty and Richards had each been denied individual titles by two-hundredths of a second.
Talk of a world-record demolition proved optimistic, but in living up to the priority brief these men ascended from champions to greats.
Scott now has seven Olympic medals, fewer only than Sirs Bradley Wiggins and Jason Kenny among British athletes, and as many as fellow Scotsman Chris Hoy.
Dean has three, all of them gold, the joint-most of any British swimmer, alongside Peaty and as of this evening, remarkably, Guy, the ultimate team man. Before you question the lack of individual prize among the 28-year-old’s six medals in all, remember this is the swimmer who sacrificed his best shot at solo glory in Tokyo, pulling out of the butterfly final to be at his best for the mixed medley team.
His lead-off leg here in the morning heats - a lifetime best nine years on from his last in what has been accepted as a slow pool - would have been enough for fifth in the individual final the night before.
And then there’s Richards. Imagine, after swimming’s underwhelming home Games of 2012, trying to convince anyone that owning two gold medals and a silver would soon make you the least decorated member of a British relay team. At just 21, with no end of talent, there is the promise of plenty more to come.
Britain’s depth in this event is such that Dean, until Monday night still the reigning 200-free champion, had not even qualified to defend his title, beaten into third and out of a swim by Richards and Scott at the national trials.
In truth, that did the rest of the world no favours. He came into this relay fresh, with something to prove and delivered a mature swim. Following their individual exploits on Monday, both Scott, fourth in that final, and Richards had been rested for the heat but Britain still qualified fastest thanks to stellar swims from stand-ins Jack McMillan and and Kieran Bird.
Both will get medals for their part, but there was never realistically going to be a shakeup to the foursome that not only triumphed in Tokyo but also claimed the world title in Budapest two years on.
Richards has a hectic schedule at these Games and began the night with a failed attempt to make the 100m freestyle final, again banished out to lane one and this time unable to get on terms with the central pace.
Ninety minutes later, though, he was back in the thick of it, swimming the third leg on a backloaded team after Guy was again superb up front and Dean held steady a half-second lead.
Briefly, you feared fatigue might hinder Richards and leave Scott some serious work to do. Once the anchor hit the water in front, though, the deed was as good as done, another set of gold coming home.
Earlier in the night, 800m freestyler Daniel Wiffen had made history as the first Irishman to win an Olympic title in the pool, also delivering his country’s first gold medal of these Games.
Wiffen, who was born in Leeds but moved to Northern Ireland at the age of two, was engaged an in a thrilling duel with Italy’s Gregorio Paltrinieri, with just one-hundredth of a second between the pair with 200m to go, before the Irishman stormed home to a historic success.
Meanwhile, Australia’s Kaylee McKeown produced an Olympic record swim to retain her 100m backstroke title, toppling America’s world-record holder Regan Smith to strike a key blow in the battle to top swimming’s medal table.
