Cycling sensation Anna Henderson banked a stunning silver to complete Team GB’s best opening day since Moscow 1980.

Britain have not doubled up on the podium on day one of an Olympics for 44 years but many were predicting a time trial medal to follow hot on the heels of Scarlett Mew Jensen and Yasmin Harper’s diving bronze in the morning.

What those sages may not have called was who would win it. Josh Tarling, 20, was tipped as the golden boy but a puncture put paid to his chances and he missed the podium by a whisker.

Instead it was Henderson who ensured the Union Jack would be hoisted aloft at the medal ceremony.

The 25-year-old from Hemel Hempstead has suffered two broken collarbones so far this year and the most recent of those led her to fear her Parisian dreams were up in smoke.

But she has bounced back in style and saved her best for when it mattered most, staying on two wheels as rivals fell around her in torrential rain to bank silver narrowly ahead of Chloe Dygert, with Australian Grace Brown more than a minute-and-a-half clear at the summit.

“Last year, I was two seconds from the bronze at Worlds, so I’m really happy to be on the right side of the seconds this time,” Henderson said.

 “I’m really proud. The second one (injury) mentally hurt a lot, and it really took a lot to get back and get the motivation again.

“But I always had Paris on my mind and that really carried me through, and I can’t stop mentioning the people around me who got me through.”

Tarling, on the other hand, was understandably devastated after his mechanical mishap but was philosophical enough to put it down to misfortune.

“It happens, doesn’t it. There’s not a lot I can do,” said the Welshman, who will have the opportunity to make amends in next Saturday’s road race.

In the pool, Britain’s 4x100m freestyle relay teams missed out on medals as the men finished fifth and the women seventh in their respective finals.

Adam Peaty made it safely through to the men’s 100m backstroke final, winning his semi-final in 58.86 seconds.

He will now defend his crown in Sunday night’s final but will fly the British flag single-handedly after James Wilby narrowly missed out, finishing fifth in the same semi.

Team GB’s eventers showed no signs of a hangover from the Charlotte Dujardin scandal as they broke two Olympic records in the dressage stage of the competition.

Laura Collett and her horse London 52 scored 17.5, breaking a 20-year record, while the combined score of Collett, Ros Canter (Lordship Gruffalo) and Tom McEwen (JL Dublin) came to 66.7, beating the previous best team score after dressage.

Elsewhere, Adam Burgess laid down a marker by qualifying second-quickest for Monday’s canoe slalom semi-finals, while Kimberley Woods also progressed.

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