US swim prodigy Michael Phelps will nail his third Olympic gold medal on Tuesday if he could outdo South Korean "little brother" Park Tae Hwan.
Newly crowned in the men's 400-meter freestyle, Park has made it clear that he wants more gold.
"I want the gold medal," Park said after Monday's 200 freestyle semifinals, in which he ranked second.
Phelps, having secured two golds, is getting closer to his target -- breaking the record of seven gold conquered by Mark Spitz in 1972.
Phelps won six golds in Athens, where he competed in eight races and the only individual gold he didn't get is the 200 freestyle. Australia's Ian Thorpe won the gold and Phelps settled for a bronze.
Phelps's challengers include his teammate Peter Vanderkaay, who entered the final with the fastest time.
On Tuesday, Aaron Peirsol might add another gold for the United States. Reigning Olympic champion, Peirsol set a new world record in July this year at the Olympic trials.
In the women's events, Australia's Leisel Jones, also world record holder, will campaign for the 100 breaststroke gold, which she has been longing for over the years. In Athens, she was defeated by Chinese swimmer Luo Xuejuan and teammate Brooke Hanson, settling for a bronze.
Jones showed very good form in Beijing and broke the Olympic record in the 100 breaststroke heats. More than one second faster than all the other finalists, it seems that hardly anyone could be threat to Jones.
The women's 100 backstroke could be a duel between U.S. swimmer Natalie Coughlin and Zimbabwean Kirsty Conventry.
Conventry, an Athens silver medalist, has shown incredible good shape in Beijing. After breaking the Olympic record in Sunday's heats, she smashed Coughlin's world record in Monday's semifinals.
It's predictable that Coughlin will not let go the gold that easily. After qualifying second in the semifinals, Coughlin said she would be more powerful in the final.
"It went very well. It's exactly where I wanted to be going into the finals," she said.
Tuesday will also test Phelps' capability of competing in multiple events. The ambitious swimmer will have to jump into the pool again for the 200 butterfly semifinals less than one hour after his 200 freestyle final.
(Xinhua News Agency August 11, 2008)