McNeil, who studies at Durham High School for Girls and Sawyers, who studies at Millfield Senior School, boosted Great Britain’s medal tally to three from the Games.

In the bobsleigh event, the duo moved from fourth place to second position after the first run, in a race won by the Netherlands' Marije van Huigenbosch and Sanne Dekker.

The second Great Britain pair, Kirsten Emerson and Frances Slater, finished fourth. In the boys event, bobsleighers Ollie Biddulph and James Lelliott, who are former Millfield Senior School pupils, finished fifth.

Driver McNeil said: "It means so much, I have been working really hard for a long time so to finally have a medal, which is all I wanted from the start is great.

"My first run was not great and I was not pleased with it at all as I had done better in training. So for the second one I just had to forget everything, pretend it is a new race, a new day. We pushed our best, I had a fairly good drive and it worked out in the end."

Brakewoman Sawyers, who splits her time between bobsleigh and heptathlon, added: "This is what we came here really hoping we could get and after the first run we were fourth, thinking we have not done it.

"We then thought we had got third and then looked at the last sled and realised we had silver. It feels amazing," she said.

British Olympic Association chief executive Andy Hunt has predicted a bright future for the duo, he said: "It is brilliant, there is no doubting that Innsbruck is just the start for these two!"

14-year-old Jack Burrows clinched gold and 15-year-old Aydin Djemal took home silver in the 3000m mixed team short-track speed skating to secure Great Britain's other medals.

By Stuart Appleby