Sprinting sensation Gout Gout has broken ANOTHER Usain Bolt record as the teen is ranked among the fastest ever teens.
The 16-year-old Australian track and field whizzkid has been ‘Gout’ of this world over the last six months breaking record after record. And he just managed his greatest feat yet to mark him out as a potential superstar of the sport in the years to come. He ran the 200m in 20.04 seconds during the Australian schools championships in Brisbane on Saturday, breezing away from his opponents before slowing casually before crossing the finish line.
His time broke the national record set by Peter Norman’s time of 20.06 when he won silver at the 1968 Olympics in Mexico City. Gout’s time is also the fastest ever by a 16-year-old and the second fastest by an athlete under the age of 18 – behind Erriyon Knighton’s 19.84 as a 17-year-old in 2021. Gout, who turns 17 later this month, also ran the fourth-fastest 100m by an Australian with a time of 10.04 on Friday. What a weekend for the young speedster.
The Brisbane-born wonder is 6ft 2in, and his speed and running style has earned him comparisons with Jamaican legend Usain Bolt. But Gout also has now overtaken the legendary Olympic running icon’s 200m time of 20.13.
After his latest incredible achievement, Gout said: “It’s pretty crazy. Right now I can’t process it, but I guess tonight when I go to bed, I’ll think about it. These are adults. And me, I’m just a kid, and I’m running them (down). I’ve been chasing that record, but I didn’t think it would come this year. I thought it would come maybe next year, the year after that.”
Australian broadcaster ABC said Gout will travel to the United States next month to train with Olympic 100m champion Noah Lyles. The son of migrants from war-torn South Sudan, Gout lives in the Brisbane suburb of Ipswich. Gout will be 20 by the time the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles come around and 24 when the 2032 Olympics will be held his home city.