IAAF World Championships 2013: Allyson Felix, Usain Bolt and Top Stars to Watch

The IAAF World Championships currently underway in Moscow experienced a buildup completely mired in doping and Russia's anti-gay laws. 

All of the controversy has been shelved for the moment and the attention is back where it should be—on the athletes. 

The competitions in Moscow are a chance for Olympic nuts to get their fill before having to wait until 2016 when Rio de Janeiro hosts the Summer Olympics. 

Lost in the discussion of certain controversies is the fact the world's greatest athletes have converged on one location from 206 different nations to compete for medals and the opportunity to break world records. 

The records may not be broken, but you can bet star athletes such as Allyson Felix will work tirelessly in an attempt to have their names etched in stone.

Here are Felix and a few other top stars to watch as the Athletics World Championships rage onward. 

Usain Bolt

You can't talk races and not mention the polarizing Usain Bolt. 

Bolt has already reclaimed the world championship in the 100-meter dash, which he lost two years ago in South Korea courtesy of a false start. 

There was no false start this time in Moscow. Bolt exploded off the line and recorded a stellar 9.77 time, with American Justin Gatlin taking home the silver after being the closest in tow with a 9.85 tally after crossing the finish line. 

The crazy part is Bolt is just getting started. He'll also compete in the 200-meter dash and the 4x100-meter relay, both of which he won gold medals in during the 2011 World Championships. 

Bolt sprinting away from Moscow with three gold medals is in no way difficult to fathom. 

Bohdan Bondarenko

Races may be the star of the show when it comes to the World Championships thanks to guys like Bolt, but the high jump is an event to watch this year as well. 

Bondarenko from Ukraine is by no means a household name like some of the contestants in other events, but he is set to potentially break a world record that has withstood the test of time for almost two decades.

The current world record is held by Javier Sotomayor of Cuba with a height of 2.45 metres from 1993. 

Unfortunately for Sotomayor and his record, Bondarenko is a freak of nature that has already come close to breaking the record once.  

Expect Bondarenko to blow away the competition and easily win gold during the final on August 15. That's nice, but we have a feeling Bondarenko's eyes are set on a much larger goal. 

Allyson Felix

Allyson Felix enters the World Championships as a record holder for most world golds, tied only with Carl Lewis and Michael Johnson, both who have nine to their name as well. 

As you probably know, Felix scored triple gold at the London Olympics and has a total of 16 combined Olympic and world gold medals. 

Felix could add three more to her impressive list in Moscow as she is expected to enter the 200-meter dash to go along with the 4x100-meter and 4x400-meter relays.

Winning three more medals in Moscow would put Felix in even more elite company as she would move within one of the all-time leader at the World Championships, Jamaican Merlene Ottey.

We are used to seeing Felix dominate the competition, especially as of late. If she performs as well as she did at the London Olympics, the rest of the field better watch out. 

Follow B/R's Chris Roling on Twitter for more news and analysis @Chris_Roling