Gold a fitting color

Kerri Walsh painted her fingernails blue for her march toward a second Olympic beach-volleyball title. Misty May-Treanor wanted to match her teammate but decided it just wasn't the right color.

''You have to have gold,'' she said of the special shade she selected for their semifinal victory.

May-Treanor isn't likely to change the color as she and Walsh go for another gold medal in the final match, which will be televised live in NBC's prime-time coverage.

The U.S. duo, which has won 107 consecutive matches, will play the top-seeded team of Tian Jia and Wang Jie of China.

Usain Bolt likely will become the first man since Carl Lewis in 1984 to sweep the 100- and 200-meter dashes. The Jamaican sprinter set a world record when he won the 100, and NBC will show him race for the 200 gold in its prime-time coverage tonight.

The first BMX gold medal in Olympic history will be awarded when the rough-and-tumble event makes its debut. The Americans have three men who should contend; Jill Kintner is the lone U.S. woman in the field.

The men's 110-meter hurdles race will be run without defending Olympic champion Liu Xiang, who pulled out of his preliminary heat with a foot injury. Current world-record holder Dayron Robles of Cuba should compete against American David Oliver for the gold.

ON THE AIR Other events can be found at nbcolympics.com 9 a.m. - noon | Men's volleyball - quarterfinal (LIVE); women's diving - platform competition.

7-11 p.m. | Track and field -- Gold-medal finals: men's 200, women's 400 hurdles; gymnastics -- gala; women's beach volleyball -- gold-medal match (LIVE); cycling - BMX gold-medal finals (LIVE).

11:35 a.m.- 1 a.m. | Women's volleyball - semifinal (LIVE); women's track and field -- hammer throw gold-medal final; women's diving - platform semifinals.

1-11 a.m. | Men's basketball - four quarterfinals, including United States vs. Australia (LIVE); men's beach volleyball -- semifinal; canoeing - semifinals (LIVE); women's swimming - marathon; men's water polo -- quarterfinals.

11 p.m. - 1 a.m. | Softball - semifinal.

4-6 p.m. | Boxing - 51kg, 75kg quarterfinals.

4 a.m.-4 p.m. | Softball - bronze-medal game (LIVE); men's volleyball -- quarterfinals (LIVE); baseball - United States vs. Japan; women's field hockey -- semifinal; wrestling - freestyle 66kg, 74kg gold-medal finals; table tennis; men's handball -- quarterfinal.

24-hour MSNBC & CNBC HD simulcasts and coverage.

5-7 p.m. | Synchronized swimming - duet gold-medal final; gymnastics.

1-5 a.m. | Men's basketball -- quarterfinal; track and field - gold-medal finals; men's diving -- springboard competition.

7-9 a.m. | Men's beach volleyball - semifinal; gymnastics - individual event gold-medal finals.

11 p.m.-midnight | TBA.