A botched ribbon toss – a miscue that ended with one of Russia's streamers briefly laying on the Rio Olympic Arena floor – put the overwhelming favourites in the rhythmic gymnastics group final in an unfamiliar spot after the first of two rotations on Sunday (21 August).

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The Russians found themselves in third place behind Spain and Bulgaria. Rather than panic, Russia went the other way.

"It just boosted us," Anastasiia Tatareva said. "It forced us to pull ourselves together and do the best and not to give any chance to our opponents."

There usually never is when the Russians are on their game. The five-woman team responded to the mini-crisis with a brilliant finish during the second rotation – an intricate set of dancing and gymnastics that included tossing clubs and hoops with precision that would look right at home in Cirque Du Soleil – to claim a fifth straight Olympic gold.

Russia's two-round total of 36.233 was good enough to survive a serious scare from Spain. The Spaniards eventually returned to the podium for the first time since 1996 with a silver. Spain led qualifying on Saturday and was on top again after ribbons, though the Russians believe Spain's lead had as much to do with their own rare mistake.

"There was a little hiccup," Tatareva said. "But then everything went smoothly and we put everything together and finished well."

Spain, which won the first Olympic gold awarded in the sport when it was introduced in Atlanta in 1996, was hardly complaining about the outcome. Four years ago the Spanish were a close fourth. A medal of any colour would have been fine, though even they were taken aback when they found themselves on top of the leaderboard during qualifying.

Close but no cigar for the Spanish team of Sandra Aguilar, Artemi Gavezou, Elena Lopez, Lourdes Mohedano and Alejandra Quereda (Photo: Getty Images/Clive Brunskill)

"Yesterday came as a surprise to us," Alejandra Quereda said. "Of course we worked toward a medal but we didn't expect things to happen like that. For us, a silver medal tastes like gold to us."

It also raised the stakes heading toward Tokyo 2020. Russia remains on top, though the gap may finally be closing.

"Nobody is undefeatable," Quereda said. "We could see that yesterday. Yes, Russia is strong in rhythmic gymnastics but we're getting there."