Australian teenager Gout Gout has smashed two records in the 200m and in so doing bettered what Usain Bolt did at his age.
The 16-year-old sprinter is still just a schoolboy, but that has not stopped him making history at the Australian All Schools Athletics Championship.
Gout has burst onto the scene and could well become the next Bolt, should his track and field career trajectory continue at its current rate.
He competes in both the 100m and 200m events and on Friday, the teenage sensation smashed his 100m personal best at the 2024 Australian All Schools Athletics Championship by running a time of 10.04 seconds.
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The performance has made him the fourth fastest under-18 athlete of all time and the fifth fastest Australian of all time in the event.
And he has now followed that up by breaking records in the 200m at the same championship, which is taking place in Brisbane, beating two huge milestones in the process.
His time in the event of 20.04 seconds has beaten a national record of 20.06 seconds, which was set by Peter Norman 56 years ago, as well as the record for the region of Oceania.
And his time has also bettered what the legendary eight-time Olympic gold medal winning Bolt managed in the under-18 age bracket as the Jamaican ran a 20.13 seconds as a 16-year-old back in 2003.
Gout's remarkable time has also ensured he has now become the second fastest under-18 sprinter of all-time, behind American Erriyon Knighton whose world record of 19.84 seconds was set when he was a 17-year-old in 2021.
Speaking after his 200m triumph, 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).
"It’s going to be a great future for sure. I didn’t expect it to be that fast but I guess I ran Australia’s fastest ever time in the 200.
"I've been chasing that record, but I didn't think it would come this year. I thought it'd come maybe next year, the year after that."
Gout has been tipped by fans as the next Bolt - and with a performance like that, it is easy to see why.
Topics: Athletics, Usain Bolt, Gout Gout
John McDougall