Topics: Athletics, Fan Reactions, Usain Bolt, Gout Gout
Australian sprint sensation Gout Gout has broken another 100 metre record - and fans are making the same Usain Bolt comparison after seeing footage of his performance.
The 16-year-old, who will turn 17 later this month, went viral earlier this year for his performance in the U18 boys 100 metre race at the 2024 Queensland Athletics Championships.
He clocked a time of 10.29 seconds - then a personal best - in March, with his run going viral later in the year when it was shared by a prominent Twitter user.
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At September's U20 World Championships in Lima, Peru, Gout set a personal best time of 20.60 in the 200 metre event, running 0.01 faster than Usain Bolt did in the same race back in 2002.
And on Friday, the 16-year-old smashed his 100 metre personal best at the 2024 Australian All Schools Athletics Championship.
He ran a time of 10.04 seconds, making him the fourth fastest U18 athlete of all time and the fifth fastest Australian of all time.
Sadly for Gout, the time won't feature in the record books as the race was held in a tailwind of 3.4m/s - comfortably beyond the legal limit of 2.0m/s. He did, however, run 10.17 in a much lower tailwind earlier in the meet.
Footage of the 10.04 race has now emerged on social media - and it shows the 16-year-old simply blowing away his competition in style.
His start wasn't particularly impressive over the first 10 metres, and it took him until around 40 metres to take the lead. But from there, Gout unleashed the afterburners.
In the final half of the race - which is usually where the elite athletes stand out - he sprinted away from his opponents and won in exceptionally comfortable fashion, even while appearing to slow up slightly in the closing metres with the race comfortably secured.
And fans quickly compared his running style to that of the legendary Bolt.
One wrote: "The way Gout Gout just floats across the track over the last 40 metres is incredible. Tell me it doesn't remind you of the way Usain Bolt glided at his peak."
A second said: "I've been a bit sceptical of the comparisons but the similarity in which they run is undeniable."
A third added: "He's definitely in the same league as Bolt."
