London 2012: More Gold Awaits Usain Bolt and Michael Phelps

Usain Bolt and Michael Phelps will have some new Olympic gold medals for their trophy cases following the 2012 London games. 

These two men stole the show with record-breaking performances at the 2008 Games.

It was there when Bolt announced himself as the unquestioned king of sprinting. 

He won the gold in the 100m with an Olympic record time of 9.69, and this was despite the fact he coasted the last few steps with a big lead. 

He followed that up with a world and Olympic record in the 200m at 19.30 seconds. And this came with a slight headwind. 

Phelps entered the 2008 Olympics as the already unquestioned king of swimming. He won the gold medal in all eight events he participated in. The eight golds in one Olympics was a record.

Since those Olympics, both have experienced some struggles.

Michael Phelps' Winding Road to the 2012 Olympics

Various pictures and reports surfaced of Phelps partying his historic Olympic triumph. This led to many questioning his dedication to his sport, and his results began slipping. 

However, Phelps appears to have regained his dedication, and his performances are reflecting that. Phelps recently, on CBS' 60 Minutes, announced that the 2012 London games would be his last Olympics.

He also made it clear that he was set to go out with a bang. CTVOlympics.ca was kind enough to pass along some of his quotes from the show. Phelps:

"

I kind of feel like my old self again. I'm swimming times like I used to. I'm swimming races how I used to.

"

This is bad news for the rest of the Olympic swimming hopefuls. It remains to be seen which events he will compete in, but whatever he decides on, it is a good bet will dominate them. 

Usain Bolt Proves He's Back on Track

As for Bolt, he has endured some struggles as well. His times have also slipped, and in the 2011 world championships he was disqualified for a false start. 

Like Phelps, Bolt is ready to put those struggles behind him. In the Jamaica International Invitational, his first race of the year, Bolt turned in the fastest 100m time of the year at 9.82. 

Following the race, Bolt was quoted by the BBC, and comes to us via sports.myjoyonline.com:

"

I feel better than last year, so I'm definitely happy with myself. I don't think my execution was perfect, but I think for my first race it was good.

"

That is also an ominous sign for the rest of the world's sprinters. There is no doubt that Bolt is still the fastest man on the planet. He just has to have the focus to pull it off. And he certainly seems ready to enter the 2012 Olympics ready to dominate.