As the country reacted with everything ranging from chuckles to outrage to the photo of Michael Phlps smoking marijuana, the Olympic swimming champion and his handlers sprung into damage control.

Phelps quickly acknowledged “bad judgment” in a written statement. The apology was enough for his biggest sponsors, Speedo, Omega, Hilton, as well as the International Olympic Committee. USA Swimming, which suspended him for three months, and Kellogg’s, which dropped him like a soggy Froot Loop, weren’t so forgiving.

At the same time this past week, Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens continued to face allegations and formal charges in their respective performance enhancement sagas. The Washington Post reported that tests had linked Clemens’ DNA to blood in syringes that a personal trainer said he used to inject Clemens with steroids and human growth hormone. The results could boost the goverment’s case if it decides to indict him on charges that he lied to Congress about using performance-enhancing drugs.

The government already has a case, and a trial, against Bonds, scheduled to begin March 2. This past week, a district court judge unsealed court documents containing evidence the prosecution will use against the slugger, including positive drug tests allegedly taken by him (although the judge indicated those may not be admissible during the trial). On Thursday, Bonds pleaded not guilty to charges he lied to a grand jury investigating steroid use in sports.

Clemens and Bonds probably wouldn’t be in legal limbo if they had just vaguely owned up to some wrong-doing, a la Phelps or Jason Giambi. But unlike Phelps, their places in their sport’s history would still be sullied because they compiled numbers and records while juiced, rather than stoned. The baseball writers who serve as gatekeepers to the Hall of Fame, and who remain in denial that performance-enhancing drugs may be mitigated but will never be completely eliminated from the sport, would still relegate arguably the greatest hitter and pitcher of the last 50 years to Pete Rose’s purgatory.

Everyone seems to agree that arrogance got Bonds and Clemens where they are today and youthful indiscretion got Phelps where he is. Our society is more willing to forgive the latter than the former, probably because everyone will admit to being young and stupid once but no one will admit, even to themselves, to ever being arrogant. We all like to think we are the meek that will inherit the Earth.

A lot of athletes don’t think that way. Most great athletes certainly don’t. It’s part of what drives them to be great. It’s what makes them take risks on and off the field or court.

Phelps, Clemens and Bonds all took risks to become the great athletes they were. Some of the risks Clemens and Bonds took are illegal and/or considered cheating. None of the risks Phelps took, at least none that we know of, are considered cheating.

In 2012, Clemens and Bonds will be up for the Hall of Fame, while Phelps, assuming he decides to get back in the pool, will be trying to break the record for most Olympic medals and gold medals ever.

When Clemens and Bonds’ Hall credentials are examined for posterity, their arrogance will be used against them, whether they have been convicted of perjury or not.

If Phelps stays out of trouble, or at least doesn’t get caught, until the London games, he will be America’s darling again. If he and his publicists are smart, they will continue to portray an “aw shucks” demeanor for the next four years so his past transgressions, which also include a 2004 arrest for drunken driving, will be forgotten or attributed to a younger, dumber facsimile.

Perhaps Bonds and Clemens would be better off if they just apologized now. Or perhaps they would have been even better served to have begun the injections when they were fresh-faced rookies.

Randy Whitehouse is a staff writer who can be reached at [email protected]