Pushed all the way by Brazil's Fabiana Murer and Greece's Nikoleta Kyriakopoulou, the London Olympic silver medallist won gold with her third attempt at the winning height before failing three times at 5.01m.
Silva needed all three goes to get over at 4.70 and join an unprecedented seven women going for 4.80. Murer and Silva cleared 4.85 at the first attempt to ultimately leave Kyriakopoulou with bronze.
With the noisy crowd roaring her on, Silva slid over the bar at 4.90 to win the title. Murer's clearance at 4.85 was a South American record and she took silver.
(Reporting by Nick Mulvenney, editing by Ken Ferris)
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