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LONDON (Reuters) - The teary but euphoric face of Jessica Ennis beamed out from news-stands across Britain on Sunday as Games fever swept a proud host nation basking in its greatest Olympic day in more than a century.
"Hep, hep hooray," declared the nation's best-selling tabloid Sun newspaper after Ennis won the heptathlon on a gold-rush Saturday that saw the host nation snap up six Olympic titles.
Photographs of Ennis, down-to-earth and smiley, were plastered all over the front pages in her moment of triumph - wrapped in the Union Jack flag and hailed as Queen of the Games, Superwoman, Golden Girl and Sensational.
"Jess the best day ever," declared the Daily Mail after the country's biggest single-day gold medal haul since 1908. "Britain's dripping in gold."
"Happy and Glorious," boomed the Independent after a day when the national anthem was heard repeatedly on the podium and sung by crowds cheering every new medal.
Two golds in rowing and one at the cycling velodrome were followed by a hat-trick of victories in athletics from Ennis, Greg Rutherford (long jump) and Mo Farah (10,000 metres).
Britain took their collection of golds to 14 at the London Games to lie third in the overall medals table behind the United States (26) and China (25).
"Their extraordinary efforts have brought rapture to streets, parks and living rooms in London and all over the country if not the planet," London mayor Boris Johnson said in a statement.
"It has been a remarkable first week and my hearty congratulations go to every single athlete that has taken part," added Johnson, sounding almost restrained for a man whose enthusiasm usually knows no bounds.
"They have entertained billions of people around the world and I for one cannot wait to see what they serve up for week two."
London Games chief Sebastian Coe, a double Olympic 1,500 champion, said: "I think we've witnessed something sensational. I've never known a night in UK athletics like that, it was unbelievable."
The front page of the Sunday Times picked up the baton, revelling in "Our Finest Olympic Hour" with a spectacular picture of Rutherford flying through the air in mid-jump.
"Sensational" said the Daily Telegraph, the headline running above photos of all six British gold-medal victors from the second Saturday of the Games.
"That Was Pure Gold" agreed the Independent.
"One by one we counted them in on another astonishing day of British Olympic success."
(Writing by Tony Jimenez/Alan Baldwin; Editing by Alastair Himmer)
