Nicola Olyslagers won silver in the high jump and Eleanor Patterson bronze, putting two Australians on the Olympics podium in an athletics event for the first time in 56 years. The pair finished behind world record holder Yaroslava Mahuchikh.

Olyslagers was a valiant second, only losing on a countback. She cleared 2.00m on her third attempt, thereby staying in the contest with the Ukrainian who had until that stage not missed a jump.

And there was a moment of intrigue when both missed their first two attempts at 2.02m. Despite urging from a packed Stade De France, the Australian – who has a season best of 2.03m – could not produce a clearance which would have kept her in the contest, handing the gold to the Ukrainian.

Olyslagers said she felt like her second place was “really beautiful”, but also that she felt she was close to clearing on her first attempt at 2.02m.

“If we’d moved that back just a step further [reduce it by 1cm], maybe I’d have a different coloured medal around the neck, but that’s okay because that means [in] Los Angeles we know what to do when I get to 2.02m.”

She has now won two Olympic silver medals in a row. “I feel like I’m a different athlete than I was three years ago, like when it comes to my consistency,” she said. “I have a following at home that were watching, maybe expecting a lot of things from me, but even under that pressure, rather than shrink back from from performing I feel like – for the 2.00m jump – I rose to the occasion.”

Patterson shared bronze with another Ukrainian, Iryna Gerashchenko, after both cleared 1.95m, and were without a miss until the bar reach 1.98m.

The pair embraced when their medal was secured, but on a warm night at the Stade de France, the gold still had to be decided.

It is the first time two Australians have been on the podium in an Olympic athletics event since Raelene Boyle and Jennifer Lamy-Frank won silver and bronze in the women’s 200m in 1968.

“Obviously, it was wonderful to be able to share the podium with Nicola last year [at the World Championships],” Patterson said. “But it’s an Olympics, it’s the big dance, and so that’s really, really special.”

Only Olyslagers and Mahuchikh cleared at 1.98m. However, it was the Ukrainian who would go on and win it, thanks to her first clear at 2.00m.

American Vashti Cunningham finished fifth, a single miss at 1.91m preventing her from sharing the bronze.

After the gold medal was secured, the Ukrainian – who broke a 36-year-old world record last month in jumping 2.10m – had one attempt at 2.04m but was unsuccessful.

Despite posting a height 10cm short of her personal best, Mahuchikh was elated. Draped in the Ukrainian flag alongside her countryman, she rang the ceremonial bell at the Stade de France and enjoyed a lap of honour with the other medallists.

Olyslagers said the Ukranians have been on a difficult journey in recent years, and they were “dear friends” not just competitors.

“The perfect podium, like tonight was it, the four of us all there sharing it together. Of course you want an Australian anthem, and that means I’m just going have to work harder for Los Angeles.”