AAP
AUSTRALIAN sprint prodigy Gout Gout has etched his name into the record books, storming to a sensational 19.67 seconds in the men’s 200m final at the national athletics championships in Sydney.
The 18-year-old Queenslander becomes the first Australian to legally break the 20-second barrier, obliterating his previous national mark of 20.02 and confirming his status as one of the brightest young talents in world sprinting.
His time not only rewrites the national record, previously held by Peter Norman for more than half a century, but also surpasses the under-20 benchmark set by Jamaican great Usain Bolt, who ran 19.93 as a teenager.
Only American Erriyon Knighton has gone faster at the same age, though his 19.49 performance was not ratified.
Gout said the breakthrough had been building for months after previously running a wind-assisted sub-20.
“I’ve been chasing it ever since I got that illegal sub-20,” he said. “It’s been on my mind this whole year and these past couple of months.
“For the past week, in my head, I would tell myself I’m running 19.75 – and obviously 19.67, so, you know, gotta love it.”
The landmark run capped another dominant performance from the teenager, who successfully defended his national title in emphatic fashion.
Fellow Australian Aidan Murphy also dipped under the 20-second mark, clocking 19.88 to finish second in a race that signals a new era for Australian sprinting.
Gout described finally breaking the barrier under legal conditions as a defining moment.
“It’s a big weight off my shoulder,” he said.
“I’m still only 18, just turned 18, so I definitely think I can go faster for sure.”
The rising star has opted to bypass the Commonwealth Games to focus on the World Under-20 Championships in Oregon.
