NEW YORK » Just twice in Olympic decathlon history has one nation swept all the medals.

Americans Glenn Morris, Bob Clark and Jack Parker did it at Berlin in 1936, and countrymen Bob Mathias, Milt Campbell and Floyd Simmons accomplished it at Helsinki in 1952.

Obviously, it’s a rare feat. But it’s just what Hawaii’s Bryan Clay, Texas’ Trey Hardee and Oregon’s Ashton Eaton hope to do at the London Games of 2012, in the 23rd decathlon in Olympic history.

It’s a glittering vision that already has multitudes of American track and field devotees full of monopolistic medal expectations, and the three delight in the heaps of attention they’re generating.

Thus, the spotlight will be on them in the first major stop on the 2011 American indoor track and field circuit— tomorrow’s 104th Millrose Games at Madison Square Garden.

"It’s great for the decathlon, and it’s great for track and field," said Clay at a press conference yesterday heralding the new "Multi-Challenge" event (consisting of the shot put, 60-meter high hurdles and high jump).

All three open the 2011 season on high notes. Clay, 31, the graduate of Castle High School and Azusa Pacific University, is the reigning Olympic champion. Hardee, 27, won the 2009 world championship. Eaton, 23, took the past three NCAA titles.

"To me, the Millrose Games is, has been and always will be the gold standard," said Tom Jordan, the Millrose elite athletes coordinator. "The decathletes are ready to go. Each of them has an ego and none of them wants to lose. It took a ‘collaborative discussion’ to decide on the three events they’ll do at the Garden.

On past performances, Clay seems to have an edge in all three events. But Hardee and Eaton are rising forces. It figures to be a crowd-pleasing sampling of what’s to come when the three have it out over the full 10-event decathlon program later in the year.

All going as expected, the threesome will take their talents to Daegu, Korea, for the World Championships in late August, in a preview of what’s to come at London in 2012.

"I’m up here with two of the greatest athletes in the world. Competing with these guys is going to bring out amazing things from all of us. The scores are just going to get higher and higher," Hardee said.

Added Clay: "I love track and field. Anything I can do to make our event more popular, and get people to know what we do, I’m going to be there.

"My training has been going well. I may not be as sharp as I should be right now, but I feel strong. I feel ready to compete."

Clay’s best decathlon score of 8,832 points ranks him sixth all-time, on a list headed by Roman Seberle of the Czech Republic (whose 9,026 in 2001 represents the only score ever to top the 9,000 mark.) Hardee’s 8,790 best puts him ninth all-time. Eaton’s career high is just 8,457, a mere 57th all-time; then again, he’s only been a serious decathlete since 2008.

Clay’s many fans are still upset that he failed to get the major recognition he deserved for his 2008 Olympic victory. It seemed that beach volleyball and other competitions got far more airtime from NBC than the Clay victory, which determined the title of "world’s greatest athlete"— all a far cry from the spotlighted performances of Dan O’Brien, Bruce Jenner, Rafer Johnson, Milt Campbell and Bob Mathias, etc., at earlier Games.

Clay never complained.

"A lot of it comes down to just timing. When Bruce (Jenner) did what he did (at the 1976 Montreal Olympics), the timing was perfect, absolutely perfect," Clay said. "You couldn’t have asked for a better time for someone to step up and become the American hero. He was just blessed enough to be competing when he did.

"Even when Dan O’Brien did what he did (winning at Atlanta in 1996 after failing to qualify for the team in 1992), Michael Johnson absolutely stole the Games. Dan can’t walk around upset by that. He did what he had to. He won the gold medal.

"You just learn to deal with it. I went to an NAIA school so I’m used to it. I didn’t go to a big (NCAA) Division I school and get a lot of hype. You have to know why you’re doing things. You’ve got to be grounded and not in it for the accolades. You have to do it because you love it. You have to have pure intentions."

Only 11 athletes have won medals in two Olympic decathlons, with Clay (who took the silver at Athens in 2004) the latest to join the club. But no athlete has ever medaled in three Olympic decathlons, and that’s the goal he’s intent on achieving at London in 2012.