If Bryan Clay ever needs a lesson in humility, he just needs to look to son Jacob Ezra Clay, one of the world's biggest Michael Phelps' fans. He is mastering the butterfly to honor the wondrous Olympian and has finally consented to wearing goggles because, if Phelps does it, it must be cool.

Explaining to a 3-year-old the depth of what his father accomplished by winning the gold medal in the numbers-oriented grind of the 10-event decathlon at the Beijing Olympics sounds far less cool.

"I told him of everybody in the world — I say runners and generalize it for him," recalled Sarah Clay, Bryan's wife, "I told him of all the best runners from China, Mexico, and all the countries, Daddy was the best of all of them and got a gold medal."

Jacob understood enough that when Clay called him from Beijing he quickly told him, "Daddy, I'm so glad you won the gold medal." But Bryan and Sarah both know Jacob would have been just as pleased if his father won a race around the block.

That type of unconditional love and support, from his family and friends in Hawai'i (where Bryan was born and raised), Seattle (Sarah's hometown) and California (where they now live) might be Clay's biggest weapon.

"It's really nice for me because you don't feel that pressure," Clay said. "I was telling Sarah the one thing that helped me so much this Olympics was having this overwhelming feeling of support from all my family members, friends, people from church. I was going to the Games knowing that no matter what I did — won gold, silver or no medal at all — when I got home nobody would think less of me. They might be disappointed or sad for me, but they wouldn't be disappointed, necessarily, in me. Having that feeling, to not be weighed down by that pressure, was really nice."

The 28-year-old Castle High graduate has never felt the pressure of the public eye European decathletes endure, or experienced the wealth they enjoy. Even now, planning an assault on the 2012 Games to add another medal to the silver and gold Clay has already collected, the Clays — down to 16-month-old Kate — expect to see little change in their lives.

GOING GLOBAL

Former Air Force Academy decathlete Stephen Bienko, their agent of the past 18 months, doesn't either — even after projecting Clay could earn $20 million "over the course of his lifetime" for his precious gold medal. With Clay's "faith-based living" as a cornerstone, Bienko expects many more major endorsements, some involving "attracting more people to come to Hawai'i." He sees Clay "going global," along with his Bryan Clay Foundation, whose motto is "Building Champions, Changing Lives."

He also sees Clay remaining very much the man the world is slowly coming to know, whether it be in the driving rain and searing heat of Beijing, wearing a lei as he speaks to the Republican National Convention, spearing a New York City taxi with a javelin on David Letterman, or on a Straub, VISA or Johnson & Johnson commercial, chasing Jacob around the house.

"Ninety percent of the time he will take his family with him everywhere he goes," Bienko said. "You will see a lot more of him now, but he's the same. His coaches will be the same. I really don't think much will change.

"If he lived in Europe, people would be standing in front of his house every day. People would be bothering his children and wife. The situation now is perfect for Bryan."

FUTURE OPPORTUNITIES

Bienko also ponders the possibility of careers in entertainment or the NFL for Clay. His client was "guinea pig" for a Wall Street Journal story this year that used statistics to search for "The World's Greatest Athlete." Clay was analyzed by the SPARQ company (affiliated with Nike, one of his sponsors), which tests football, baseball, basketball and soccer players. He soared to the top of nearly every category, according to the report. His 40-yard dash time (4.38) ranked with the top NFL running backs and receivers, while his standing vertical (43.5) compared favorably with the best NBA players in history.

Ironically Roman Sebrle, 2004 decathlon gold medalist and one of Clay's closest friends, ranked No. 1 among the 79 world-class athletes analyzed by the Journal. LeBron James was next, followed by boxer Floyd Mayweather, football player LaDainian Tomlinson and tennis player Roger Federer.

Clay agrees with the Sebrle pick, but not with Bienko's thoughts of the NFL.

"I like the thought of the challenge, the (NFL) Combine would be a fun challenge," Clay said. "How would I stack up against all these other great athletes? That's what I'd love about it. But not necessarily taking a hit, because I think if I had to take a hit it would be a very, very quick career for me."

The Clays also grin and roll their eyes at talk of $20 million. It would be nice, but Sarah already eagerly anticipates "getting back to our world" and they both admit the first thing they will do is "clean our house." Their ultimate dream would be to have a house here, in Seattle and California, so they could comfortably enjoy their family and friends.

REALISTIC DREAMS

For now, their dreams remain downsized and remarkably realistic and familiar. Bryan would like Sarah, a kindergarten teacher, to be able to stay home with the kids "if she wants, which I know she does" after his athletic career his over. They want Jacob and Kate to go to college "without having to take out huge loans" and Kate to have the "big wedding I know she's going to want at some point."

"We might move into a little bigger house," Bryan acknowledged. "Ours is pretty small, about 1,000 square feet. I've always wanted to have a bigger house. I want a bigger yard for Jacob to run around. I want a driveway where I can put a basketball hoop up and play outside. ... That would be great, but I don't think we'll get too extravagant."

Or too caught up in it all. The Clays lead anything but the lifestyle of the rich and famous, and it is hard to imagine that ever changing. Even Bryan's approach to becoming "The Greatest Athlete in the World" has been relatively laid-back, a process Sarah attributes to the "island feeling" he exudes.

She expects that to become even more pronounced heading into London's 2012 Games.

"The next four years won't be so nerve-wracking," she said. "Ever since Athens it's just been about Beijing. It's kind of like this was his time. It was going to determine the rest of our life pretty much. There will definitely be less stress now."

HUMANITARIAN WORK

And more time for Clay's foundation, which has been in his rear-view mirror while he chased the gold medal. He hopes to give it a global look now and get involved in "some great humanitarian work around the world." But the foundation's soul remains here, with Clay's heart.

He envisions being involved in everything from lobbying the legislature to donating shoes and building an all-weather track for Castle, which can be used by "King Intermediate kids and is good for all the elementary school kids who have their yearly meet with other schools. I'd love to be able to do something like that.

"What I set out to do is shed light on the athletic talent we have here. I think there is a lot of talent in Hawai'i. I want to provide ways to allow some of the talent here in Hawai'i to get off the island, go to school, try to accomplish some of their dreams. ... Sometimes I don't think they realize those are actually options. I'd like to help them along the way."

At home, the Clays have an interesting dilemma coming up in December, when the special commemorative edition of Wheaties cereal arrives with Clay's picture on it. On the same aisle, Phelps' face will be on the Frosted Flakes box. What will Jacob Ezra Clay want?

Sarah Clay says it is simple: "We'll buy both boxes."