You can bank on it.

Missy Franklin will strike gold at the 2012 Olympics. Not just once. Or even twice. “Missy the Missile” will win three gold medals and two silver medals in London — that is, if projections made by Associated Press staffers are correct.

The first American female who will swim in seven events in a single Olympic Games, the 17-year-old Regis Jesuit High School standout is predicted to win two of her four individual events — the 100- and 200-meter backstrokes — and join her fellow Americans for a gold-medal swim in the 400 medley relay.

Additionally, Franklin and her compatriots are expected to earn silver in the 400 freestyle relay (behind the Netherlands) and the 800 freestyle relay (behind Australia).

“She has a lot of pressure on her going into the Olympics, but I think she can handle it,” Natalie Coughlin, Franklin’s teammate and idol, said recently. “Her strengths are that she’s so young, how much she loves swimming, how much she loves competing.”

The Associated Press prognosticators don’t foretell Franklin reaching the podium in the 100 or 200 freestyles.

Franklin’s quest for seven medals translates into a punishing schedule that involves races of every day of the swimming competition. Her Olympic dream officially will be realized July 28 with the 400 free relay. Her fun and Games officially end Aug. 4 with the 400 medley relay.

“I’m loving every second of it,” Franklin said. “I’m just trying to enjoy the moment and be in the moment.”

If the Associated Press staffers are clairvoyant at all, Franklin will have several moments.
Denver Post wire services