The women’s team stayed trackside to roar on the men, who faced a difficult task against heavy-hitters the United States.
And just as Neita had done, Hughes put in an exceptional final 25 metres, having suffered his own disappointments this week.
He failed to reach the 100m final, finishing sixth in his semi-final, and subsequently withdrew from the 200m heats with hamstring tightness.
“My hamstring is heavily strapped but I came out with determination in my heart,” Hughes told BBC Sport.
“I told the guys before we left the hotel ‘hey, I’m going to do my very best to get us on the podium, and you guys do your bit’.
“They did that – they got me the baton and I ran my heart out.”
Canada took victory in a season’s best 37.50, with South Africa second in 37.57 and Britain third with 37.61.
Hughes was part of the GB team that won relay silver in Tokyo three years ago, but they were later stripped of their medals after CJ Ujah tested positive for two banned substances.
Ujah was cleared of intentionally taking prohibited drugs but banned for 22 months.
The US will be left to rue their first changeover, with Christian Coleman and Kenny Bednarek essentially running into one another as they attempted to pass the baton.
They were later disqualified – meaning they have not won an Olympic title in an event that they previously dominated since 2000, or even a medal since 2004.
Nine-time Olympic champion Carl Lewis was heavily critical of the team in a post on X, calling the result “completely unacceptable”.
Coleman defended his team-mates after the race, saying they had “practised a lot”.
“We’re all human beings too and we’ve been through ups and downs in life, this is another of those,” he said.
“This is a part of the sport. This is a risk-reward type of thing. We do it on the biggest stage.”
