The Japanese team looked to be out of contention for a place on the podium but lightning legs from Haruki Takayanagi and Shunya Murakami saw the quartet finish in a combined 8min 52.75sec.

Yasuhiro Tanaka and Yuki Yamanaka were also on the Japanese squad.

France’s Nathan Maillet, Mathis Daniel, Maxime Dutter and Jacky Deforge ended the race comfortably adrift of the victorious Japanese team as they clocked 9:07.73.

The bronze medal was claimed by Luis Francisco Paredes, Javier Labrador Fernandez, Alejandro Meneses Madero and Adrian Manuel Santana of Spain.

Australia earned the women's 4x200m honours as Bronte Marshall, Casey Stevens, India Biesse-Fitton and Jade Lucy touched the wall in 11:01.40.

Their time was enough to finish ahead of Brazil’s Debora Borges Carneiro, Stephanie Ariodante, Ana Karolina Soares Oliveira and Kelly Da Silva Antunes, who were eight seconds slower in silver medal position.

Oliveira then secured her third gold medal in two days as the 17-year-old Brazilian prevailed in the women’s 100m freestyle S14 in 1:04.41.

Leslie Cichoki of the United States did enough for silver as she held off the challenge of Australia’s Jade Lucy, who was forced to settle for the bronze medal.

Maillet triumphed in the men's equivalent as he clocked 56.51 to beat the Brazilian duo of Andre Luis Bento Silva and Gutemberg De Souza, who ended with silver and bronze respectively.

Yaushiro Tanaka added to the Japanese success as he led home a one-two from the Asian nation in the men’s 50m breaststroke S14.

Tanaka touched the wall in 33.20 to oust compatriot Shinichi Hirota, while bronze went to Vladimir Hlavec of the Czech Republic.

The event in the Mexican city concludes tomorrow.