Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt returns to Olympic competition Tuesday at the 2012 London Games in the first round of the 200-meter race.
Bolt enters Olympic Stadium one day after receiving his gold medal for winning Sunday's 100-meter race, winning the unofficial title of “Fastest Man in the World”. He is hoping to once again beat Yohan Blake, his teammate, training partner and chief rival. Blake won the silver medal in Sunday's 100 meter race.
The 200-meter final is set for Thursday night.
But Tuesday has brought new Olympic heartbreak for China's Liu Xiang, the 2004 Athens gold medalist in the 100-meter hurdles. Liu struck the first hurdle with his leg in the opening round of his event and crashed to the track. Liu suffered a similar disappointment in the 2008 Beijing Games, when he was forced to withdraw in front of the home crowd due to a foot injury.
Australian Sally Pearson is picked to win the women's 100-meters hurdles gold against Americans Dawn Harper, the defending Olympic champion, and Lolo Jones.
Back in the men's draw, Kenya's Asbel Kiprop is hoping to repeat his gold medal performance from Beijing in Tuesday's final of the 1,500-meters. His challengers include Algeria's Taoufik Makhloufi, who was expelled by track and field's governing body for failing to race hard enough in his 800-meters heat. The decision was eventually revoked after it determined Makhloufi had a knee injury.
In track cycling at the Velodrome, the host country is hoping for two more gold medals as Chris Hoy races in the men's keirin for his sixth career gold medal, while Victoria Pendleton battles Germany's Kristina Vogel in the semi-finals in the women's individual sprint and a chance for a possible matchup against Australia's Anna Meares, who will face China's Guo Shauang in the semi-finals.
China leads the overall medal count for the 2012 London Olympics with 64, including 31 gold. A close second is the United States with 63 medals including 29 gold. Russia has overtaken Britain for third in the medal race, with 42 including seven gold.
