Men's 100m Dash: Justin Gatlin Team USA's Best Medal Hope in Finals

The 100-meter dash final in the 2012 Olympics is loaded with stars, and Team USA's Justin Gatlin is the team's best chance to medal.

The field is incredibly fast, so it will take a great effort to win the race. 

Jamaica's Usain Bolt is still the man to beat, but he may be vulnerable against a tough group. He is still the world's fastest man, and he will stay that way until somebody can beat him on the big stage. Bolt posted the slowest time for any runner who won his heat at 9.87 seconds, according to NBCOlympics.com.

Bolt's toughest competition besides Gatlin will be Yohan Blake, who is also from Jamaica. Blake won the second heat with a time of 9.85. He performed well in qualifying, but it will be interesting to see how he performs head-to-head with Bolt after beating him twice in previous races.

Although American Tyson Gay is always a threat to win a medal, Gatlin is overshadowing him. Gay has cooled off a bit since he was a dominant runner, and he was clocked at 9.90 seconds. It is not a bad time, but he will need to kick it up a notch if he hopes to medal.

These three runners are all very tough to beat, but Gatlin is capable of competing with all of them. 

Gatlin posted the fasted qualifying time at 9.82 seconds, so he has the ability to win a medal. Bolt appeared to ease up at the end, and it is unclear what his time would have been at full effort.

Expecting Gatlin to win gold is probably unrealistic, but he has the ability to medal. 

Team USA has three runners in the event, but they will be battling for one medal. Ryan Bailey, whose 9.96 seconds in qualifying finished second to Bolt in the heat, will be a major underdog to reach the podium.

The other two members of the American squad each have a legitimate shot to medal, but Gatlin is the better bet to challenge Bolt and Blake. Gatlin also appeared to let up a bit at the end of his heat, so it will be interesting to see which star can come out on top.

Running in qualifying is much different than competing in the finals. The intensity is higher, and now everyone is going all out. 

It will not be easy to beat Bolt, and Gatlin needs to be prepared to leave it all on the track.