British eventing riders Ros Canter, Laura Collett and Tom McEwen earned Team GB their first gold at Paris 2024 after solid rides in the show-jumping final as France had to settle for silver in front of a euphoric home crowd due to too many mistakes.
The team gold medal, Britain's fifth, makes them the Olympic Games' most successful eventing nation.
The British team ended the three-day competition with a combined score of 91.3 penalty points ahead of France with 103.6 and Japan with 115.8.
Jumping in a packed arena in the Chateau gardens of Versailles, many riders said the loud crowd was challenging, especially for younger horses that had gained no such experience over the past years marked by the Covid-19 pandemic.
"On top of the world. I have never, ever ridden into an atmosphere like that. Luckily, London is one trusty partner, so are my team," Collett said on BBC after the event.
"There's no words to describe the atmosphere, all three days. I didn't think anything would top the cross country, it was unreal."
Britain were the favourite for gold after Germany dropped out of the race when one of their riders fell, but the team's nerves were tested when Canter was handed additional penalty points for missing an obstacle during her cross-country ride on Sunday, putting France within reach of gold.
"We would have liked a little bit more leeway, but we are very good jumpers and we're such a team that we just knew if we stayed calm, bent to the process and rode every stride, we'd be alright," Collett said after sealing the victory for her team on London 52.
Canter, who leads the world ranking with her horse Lordships Graffalo, failed in her bid to challenge Sunday's penalty, which also blew her chances for an individual medal.
"I feel unbelievably sorry for Lordships Graffalo's owners who have been such phenomenal supporters of mine. They've found the whole thing quite a hard pill to swallow," Canter told reporters.
Olympic eventing was a three-day competition, combining dressage and showjumping with a cross-country race.
Collett picked up another medal later in the day after winning bronze in the in the individual eventing -- her first individual medal at the Olympics. McEwan narrowly missed out on a medal after finishing fourth while Germany's Michael Jung took gold.
"I never thought this day would come. I owe absolutely everything to that horse. The team that has made it possible just to get here," she said on BBC.
"I am so lucky that I get to be the one to go out there in an arena like that and come out with a team gold and individual bronze at an Olympics, but there are so many people involved and I just want to thank every single one of them.