Athletics prodigy
16-year-old runs faster than young Usain Bolt
Updated 12/10/2024 – 5:25 p.mReading time: 2 minutes
Australian teenager Gout Gout caused a stir with a fabulous 200 meter run. Now he is being considered as Usain Bolt’s successor.
The name Gout Gout could be on everyone’s lips in athletics in the not too distant future. The 16-year-old from Queensland, Australia is considered a child prodigy after breaking a national record at the weekend.
On Saturday at the Australian School Championships, Gout ran the 200 meters faster than any other Australian before him – in 20.04 seconds. This meant he was 0.02 seconds faster than the previous record holder, Peter Norman, who set the previous record at the 1968 Olympics and thus won silver. So far, only one athlete in the world has been faster than Gout in his age group: the American Erriyon Knighton.
But that’s not all: Gout even left the young Usain Bolt behind with this fabulous time. During his junior years, the former athletics superstar “only” managed a best time of 20.13 seconds over the 200 meters, which he set in a U18 race in Barbados in 2003.
In the adult category, the Jamaican is still the world record holder in both the 200 meters (19.19 seconds) and 100 meters (9.58 seconds).
Gout said after his sensational run: “It’s pretty crazy. I’ve been chasing this record but I didn’t think it would come this year. I thought it might come next year or the year after.”
On Friday, the teenager, whose parents come from South Sudan, had already set the fourth fastest time in Australian history in the 100-meter run with 10.04 seconds, but with such strong wind support that the time is not officially valid in the leaderboards .
Still, Gout is well on his way to becoming the next face of athletics. Fittingly, the 2032 Olympic Games will take place in Brisbane, on Gout’s doorstep. At the age of 24, he could be at the peak of his performance just in time for his “home games”.