Gout Gout competed in the under-23 200m at the Stade Louis II in Monaco last weekend, where the 17-year-old Queensland talent continued to impress. He crossed the finish line first in 20.10 seconds, an impressive result despite running against a 1.9m/s headwind.
Gout recreates a young image of Usain Bolt (Photo: Getty).
Just over two weeks ago, Gout made a splash on his European debut, setting an Australian national record (20.02 seconds) in Ostrava, Czech Republic. Had he not been hampered by the harsh weather conditions in Monaco, he could have broken the 20-second mark.
However, the teenage star maintained his unbeaten record in Europe. In this race, he accelerated strongly from the corner and left his two opponents Naeem Jack (South Africa, 20.42 seconds) and Busang Collen Kebinatshipi (Botswana, 20.28 seconds).
“My strength is my sprint speed,” Gout said after his win. “So I always focus on the first 50m or 100m. Once I get out of the corner, I know I can overcome everything. Just stay calm, focus and put all your effort into the finish line.”
After an inspiring trip to Europe, Gout will return to school in Queensland. While he has to balance his studies and training, he still has his sights set on the big goal of competing at the World Athletics Championships in Japan in September.
Gout added: “I am quite satisfied with this result. Because I had to compete in headwind conditions, this result is quite good. I did not compete much during the athletics season because I was busy with school. Only during the summer vacation did I have the opportunity to compete.”
Gout has great potential to dominate athletics (Photo: Reuters).
Despite being in one of the world's most prestigious Diamond League stages, Gout refused to compete in the official 200m event, where Olympic 100m champion Noah Lyles won in 19.88 seconds (0.8m/s headwind).
“I haven’t competed in the main event yet because I want to get acclimatized,” Gout explained. “There’s no reason to rush into big races when I’m still preparing for the world championships. Right now, my goal is to enjoy the track and learn more.”
The current world record for the 200m race belongs to track and field legend Usain Bolt, who set a time of 19.19 seconds at the world championships in Berlin (Germany) in 2009.
Many people call Gout the successor of Bolt. Although this is his first time competing in Europe, he has been noticed by the press for a long time. Gout once broke the world record in the under-16 age group that Bolt once held. If he develops in the right direction, Gout could become the second Bolt in the athletics world.
Source: https://dantri.com.vn/the-thao/truyen-nhan-cua-usain-bolt-tiep-tuc-gay-an-tuong-manh-o-chau-au-20250716114606904.htm
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