ADAM PEATY cried “happy tears” as he settled for silver in the men’s 100 metres breaststroke final to keep Team GB waiting for their first gold medal of the Paris Olympics.

For so long, Peaty has been his country’s banker and a place in the record books alongside Michael Phelps as the only male swimmers to win Olympic gold in the same event at three successive Games beckoned in the French capital.

But Italy’s Nicolo Martinenghi claimed an upset for the ages, denying Peaty a “three-peat” by 0.02 seconds, with the Rio 2016 and Tokyo 2020 champion finishing in a tie for second alongside the US’s Nic Fink.