As the nascent 100 meter rivalry between Olympic champion Justin Gatlin and recently-minted world record holder Asafa Powell resumes tomorrow night at the Golden Gala meet in the Italian capital, it,s not just the sporting world that,s looking forward to the latest clash of the two young giants of sprinting: the key players are also eagerly anticipating their showdown, as well as the many that are sure to follow.

"Both of us are fighting for each other's titles," Gatlin said. "It,s an epic battle."

Powell, the soft-spoken Jamaican who lowered the world record to 9.77 last month in Athens, agreed with his American rival's assessment. "I think it's going to be a great race."

In their only meeting this season, Gatlin narrowly defeated Powell at the Prefontaine Classic in Eugene, Ore. on June 4, where each was credited with a wind-assisted 9.84 performance. Last year, Gatlin's lone victory in the 100 meters was in the Olympic final where Powell suffered his only defeat of the season and finished fifth.

And at just 23 and 22 respectively, Gatlin and Powell are poised to set out on a rivalry that could define the battle for the title of World's Fastest Human, for the rest of the decade, a scenario that each seems very comfortable with.

"Basically, he'll be a rival and a great competitor for me as long as my career lasts," Gatlin said. "I have much respect for him and for what he's done for the sport."

Powell was quick to share his respect as well.

"I admire Justin a lot. He knows how to compete in big races. I want to learn that. He's always breathing down my neck."

"I don't think either one wants to share [dominance]," Gatlin continued, "but if it's like that, it makes it more exciting. I think it's a new era where more than one person can go out there and win it, which makes it more exciting. It,s always going to be a fight. And that,s what I expect."

After a string of fast early season performances, including a 9.84 performance at home in Kingston in early May which tied him as the third fastest sprinter ever, and a 9.85 clocking in cold, rainy conditions at the Golden Spike Super Grand Prix in Ostrava, Czech Republic in early June, Powell shaved 1/100 of a second from Tim Montgomery's 9.78 world record set in 2002. In his world record run, Powell won by more than two-tenths of a second, a massive margin in a world class race.

"The most spectacular thing was that there was no one there to push him," Gatlin said. "To run a world record, there's always someone there to push you. After watching that race, I'm excited to run against him. And if it happens, I can push him or he could push me to a new level. And that's what I'm waiting for."

Gatlin didn't seem too concerned about his last outing, a 10.03 performance for third place in Tuesday's Atletissima Super Grand Prix in Lausanne, Switzerland.

"I had a little cramp in my hamstring," Gatlin explained, which caused him to pull up some 15 meters from the finish. "But I'm ready to run well tomorrow."

The two have shared a similar road to the top, beginning with their first international appearances.

"We were in the same race in our first career race in Europe," Gatlin remembers, "so I've been watching him develop." At a European Athletics Association (EAA) meet in Padova, Italy, in July 2003, Gatlin fought a strong headwind to claim a narrow win, with each credited with a modest 10.32 clocking. An injury at the U.S. Championships kept him from the national team for the world championships that year, but he did collect several notable wins, including the season-ending million dollar challenge in Moscow where he collected $500,000. Powell, then still relatively unknown, was disqualified from the early rounds at the world championships in the now infamous "L'affaire Drummond" in which he and American Jon Drummond were ejected from the competition for a false start.

Looking ahead, Powell said he will curtail his performance load this summer to ensure his healthy arrival in Helsinki for next month's world championships.

"I'm trying not to compete as much as I did last year. Right now, the key is to remain injury-free." A slight groin injury that slowed him at the end of May recently reappeared, forcing Powell to err on the side of caution.

For Gatlin, he's envisioning few changes from the game plan that propelled him to the Olympic title last year in perhaps the finest 100 meter race in history.

"Basically, I've got the same plan as I did last year. Just to take one race at a time, and in Helsinki, just take things round by round."

While the pair are now occupying much of the short dash spotlight, Powell insists that he and Gatlin are not the only two sprinters capable of producing fast times or winning major titles.

"There are a lot of guys. You will see that in Helsinki."

A mini-preview of the world championships final could be on display in Rome's Olympic Stadium Friday night. Reigning world champion Kim Collins of St. Kitts, Olympic silver medallist Francis Obikwelu of Portugal, and Ronald Pognon of France, who ran to his first sub-10 performance with his 9.99 victory in Lausanne, are all on the start list.

Powell, last year's top-rated sprinter, has proven that he,s capable of producing fast performances and winning major invitational races, but he has been criticized for not having what it takes, to handle the pressure inherent to claiming major titles.

"I made a mistake in Athens last year," he said, "and I won't make the same mistake again."

During their joint press conference, Gatlin also set the record straight on another question that's been dogging him for much of the past year. Allyson Felix, the Olympic 200 meter silver medallist, Gatlin confirmed, is not his significant other.

"She's not my girlfriend," he said, as Felix looked on and smiled from the back of the room. "We see competition in the same light. She pushes me and I push her. We're just good friends."

Following their appearance in Rome tomorrow, both Gatlin and Powell will again meet in 100 meter races in London on July 22 and in Stockholm on July 26. Gatlin, who last month was the first man to win the 100/200 double at the U.S. championships in two decades, will then report to relay camp prior to the world championships. His manager, Renaldo Nehemiah, confirmed that Gatlin will not contest any 200 meter races prior to Helsinki.