Australia has claimed its first track cycling medal of the Rio Olympics, with the men's team pursuit taking silver following a thrilling duel with a Great Britain outfit featuring Sir Bradley Wiggins.

Meanwhile, Anna Meares and Stephanie Morton finished fourth in the women's team sprint, missing out on the bronze medal following their loss to Germany.

The Australian team pursuit quartet of Jack Bobridge, Michael Hepburn, Sam Welsford and Alex Edmondson led Great Britain for much of what was a dramatic race but could not hold on during the final kilometre.

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The Britons, with Wiggins joined by Ed Clancy, Owain Doull and Steven Burke, won gold in a world record time of 3 minutes and 50.265 seconds, breaking the mark they set in the first round.

Australia, who had beaten Great Britain to win the world championship gold in London back in March, finished in a time of 3:51.008 to collect its second consecutive silver medal in the event.

"We put so much into this, especially after London," said Hepburn, who along with Bobridge was backing up from the 2012 Olympics.

"But that's life. At the end of the day it's just a bike race and I think we will be proud of silver."

Great Britain won gold in the men's team pursuit in world record time. ( AP Photo: Pavel Golovkin )

Australia burst out of the blocks and set the pace for the opening two kilometres against the defending Olympic champions to establish a lead of 0.695 at the halfway mark.

It was during the third kilometre that Bobridge, who was rested from the first round, peeled off to leave Australia with three riders and it still led at the three-kilometre point, although Great Britain was only .90 behind.

The British upped the ante in the final four laps and assumed the lead from the Australians, who could not muster a late effort to snatch the gold.

"We went back to the old way, the Aussie spirit of going out full gas and try and hold on," Edmondson said.

"We gave everything we could we left everything out there."

The British victory gave Wiggins, the 2012 Tour de France winner, his fifth Olympic gold medal and fourth on the track in what is his farewell Games appearance.

Denmark won the bronze medal after defeating New Zealand in the race-off for third.

Meares, Morton come close to bronze

Meares and Morton were edged out by German pair Kristina Vogel and Miriam Welte for the bronze, while China defeated Russia for the gold.

The Australian duo, with Meares the lead rider, were in front of the Germans by .109 after the first lap.

But with the two-time Olympic gold medallist Meares dropping off, Morton was unable to maintain the pace and Germany won 32.636 to 32.658.

In other events, Australia's world championships silver medallist Matthew Glaetzer qualified for the quarter-finals of the men's sprint.