Great Britain won a record eighth swimming medal at Tokyo 2020 as Duncan Scott’s silver in the men’s 4x100m medley relay set a new landmark for medals won by a Briton at a single Games.

Italy finished third to take bronze.

The silver was Scott’s fourth medal in Tokyo as Britain signed off their most successful Olympics in the pool.

The USA needed a world record time of three minutes 26.78 seconds to beat Great Britain to gold in the final event of the swimming.

The win also meant a fifth gold medal in Tokyo for American superstar Caeleb Dressel. He joins compatriots Michael Phelps, Mark Spitz and Matt Biondi, as well as East Germany’s Kristin Otto, as the only swimmers to win as many as five golds at a single Olympics.

British swimmers sign off in the pool after a hugely successful Olympics

Great Britain’s swimmers sign off the Tokyo Olympics in the pool with an impressive medal haul of four golds, three silvers and one bronze to complete an incredible turnaround in fortunes.

Less than a decade ago they finished London 2012 with just three medals – one silver and two bronze – and even at the last Olympics in Rio they returned home with just the solitary gold medal.

Now they leave Tokyo with eight medals – by far the most picked up in any sport by Great Britain at these Games.

Scott’s three silvers and one gold also means he has six Olympic medals overall – only Bradley Wiggins, Chris Hoy and Jason Kenny have won more.

“I have a lot of good team-mates,” Scott told BBC Sport. “I’m very fortunate to be part of some excellent relay teams.”

Peaty, who got Britain’s first gold medal of the Games when he won the men’s 100m breaststroke, leaves with three medals – two of those golds.

But to underline just how much progress Great Britain has made in swimming, the quartet were disappointed they did not sign off with a final gold, rather than celebrating a record-breaking medal tally.

“That is the standard we are at now,” Peaty said.

“We are not looking at bronzes or silvers we are looking how to get gold. That is my mindset.”

Dressel leads USA medal charge

Before helping the USA to gold in the relay, Dressel took an individual gold with a dominant win the men’s 50m freestyle.

The 24-year-old won with an Olympic record time of 21.07 seconds to add to his 100m freestyle, 100m butterfly and 4x100m freestyle relay titles in Tokyo.

Britain’s Ben Proud finished fifth in the race as France’s Florent Manaudou took the silver and Bruno Fratus of Brazil the bronze.

Dressel’s team-mate Bobby Finke added to USA’s swimming medals collection by winning gold in the men’s 1500m freestyle. Ukraine’s Mykhailo Romanchuk won the silver while Florian Wellbrock of Germany took the bronze as Britain’s Dan Jervis finished fifth.

Emma McKeonwon the women’s 50m freestyle to secure her 10th Olympic medal – more than any other Australian athlete in history.

The 27-year-old touched home in an Olympic record time of 23.81 seconds to claim her third gold medal at the Games and her sixth overall in Tokyo. Her 10 Olympic medals moves her ahead of Australian swimming legend Ian Thorpe.

Swedish world record-holder Sarah Sjostrom finished second with Denmark’s Pernille Blume in third.

Finally, Australia won gold in the women’s 4x100m medley relay as USA won the silver and Canada took the bronze.