World Athletics Championships 2025: Gout Gout set to impress - but who is Australian teen sprint sensation dubbed 'the next Usain Bolt'?
ByTNT UK
Updated 12/09/2025 at 20:45 GMT+1
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Gout Gout shot to fame when an internet video went viral showing his incredible running pace, but the Australian teen sensation heads to Tokyo for this year's World Athletics Championships as the name on everyone's lips, with his eyes firmly set on upsetting the established elite. Still only 17, Gout is so far taking comparisons to iconic Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt in his stride.
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Gout Gout is the Australian teen sprinter so good they named him twice.
He heads to Tokyo to embark on only his second senior race abroad at this month's World Athletics Championships - live on TNT Sports and discovery+ - knowing he will have to make up for the few days of school he must skip.
But given his immense promise in the forthcoming 200m event, the 17-year-old boy wonder will hope he can quickly make up any lost time.
In winning the first of his adventures on foreign soil back in June, the Ostrava Golden Spike 200m event in Czechia, his time of 20.02 seconds improved on his famous Australian record.
Who is Gout Gout?
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Gout Gout's running style has drawn comparisons with Usain Bolt
Image credit: Getty Images
It was at school where Gout Gout - one of seven children to Monica and Bona, South Sudanese immigrants settled in Queensland - found his wings and flourished as a runner.
His precocious talent was spotted by his coach Di Sheppard as a 13-year-old, and it was not long before this gangly schoolboy was wiping the floor in competitions with those two years his senior.
Sheppard is certain her young protege will dominate the world in time.
"I'm not suggesting it. He's going to go to that level," she told Australian TV earlier this year.
"Olympic gold. It might not be '28 (Los Angeles), but definitely going to happen in 2032."
Notably aged 15, Gout won the men's under-18 200m final at the 2023 Australian Junior Athletics Championships, setting a national under-20 record as a teenager in the process.
In just 12 months, Gout has gone from relative obscurity to the face of Australian track and field, filling seats at local meets and drawing in a younger crowd.
What event will he compete in at World Athletics Championships?
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Gout can no longer go out in public without being swamped by well-wishers
Image credit: Getty Images
Gout will make his senior national team debut and will run in the 200m event in which he holds the Australian record.
The heats for the 200m start on September 17, and veteran Australian commentator Bruce McAvaney feels Gout's "exceptional" talent is supercharging the country's interest in the renewal.
"He may be 17, but I think it’s possible for him to reach the 200m final in Tokyo, which would be an extraordinary achievement at his age – even Usain Bolt couldn’t do that," McAvaney told The Guardian.
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Four-time Olympic gold medallist Michael Johnson heaped praise on Gout after his historic run, but knows the next challenge will be managing the rising expectations.
Taking to social media platform X, Johnson wrote: "Peter Norman was one of my heroes. Hard to believe no Australian had runner (sic) faster than 20.06 over the last 56 years!
"Great performances! Fun to think about his potential. But even with such great potential, realizing it is a whole different thing. The greater the potential, the higher the risk. He’ll need a solid team around him to help him navigate the journey."
How does he compare to Noah Lyles and his fastest rivals?
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Noah Lyles remains the man to beat in the 200m sprint
Image credit: Getty Images
There is no doubt that Gout is an extraordinary sprinter and lively contender even within the next few years, but Noah Lyles still sets the benchmark as the world and Olympic champion dominating the 200m with unmatched record consistency.
With a personal best of 19.31, Lyles remains the gold standard to which Gout and his rivals aspire, with the likes of Letsile Tebogo and Oblique Seville expected to be in the frame in Tokyo.
With Gout yet to face off directly in a major senior competition with the esteemed trio, the World Championships represent an early milestone in a career Australia hopes will peak with Olympic gold at Brisbane 2032.
What records has he broken? And what are his fastest times?
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Gout Gout is still a work in progress
Image credit: Getty Images
Gout's impressive showing in Perth in April had been anticipated after he had only just fallen short of breaking the 10-second barrier as a 16-year-old at the Australian All Schools Athletics Championships in 2024.
That competition in Queensland saw him set a time of 10.04secs in the 100 metre sprint - the fourth-fastest time in history for anyone under 18 years old.
The tailwinds that effectively wiped out his rapid runs earlier this year are unlikely to be such an issue in Tokyo, so he arrives at the Championships determined to prove that lightning can strike twice.
In truth, Gout doesn't need any further assistance when it comes to being pushed to run faster.
Last December, he even showcased his credentials over 200m, recording a time of 20.04 seconds to become the fastest 16-year-old over the distance.
The man he surpassed was none other than Peter Norman - the white Australian sprinter who won the 200m silver medal and stood in solidarity on the podium with Tommie Smith and John Carlos as they raised their hands and bowed their heads in the "Black Power salute" at the Olympic Games in Mexico City back in 1968.
When informed of this particular feat, Gout's calm response was: "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)."
Are the Usain Bolt comparisons justified?
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Usain Bolt
Image credit: AFP
A little over a year ago, Gout won silver at the World U20 Championships which triggered his first sponsorship with Adidas.
While he is yet to race at an Olympic event, the comparisons with Usain Bolt have already started long before he has qualified for Los Angeles in 2028.
The pair's height and similar running styles are hard to ignore - even his tendency to be sluggish out of the blocks but impressive in the back half of races.
Gout is only too aware of the hype, seeing it as the highest of compliments, given everything the eight-time Olympic gold medallist achieved in his career.
"It’s pretty cool because Usain Bolt is arguably the greatest athlete of all time, and just being compared to him is a great feeling. Obviously, I’m Gout Gout so I’m trying to make a name for myself. If I can get to the level he was, that would be a great achievement," he said via Fox Sports.
Right now, what we see is his limitless potential.
In surpassing Norman's iconic 56-year record, Gout also pushed Bolt's previous time of 20.13 seconds down to third spot for athletes under the age of 18.
It is far too early to say if Gout will go on to rival the Jamaican's unquestionable eternal status in the sport, but after qualification for the World Championships closed the book on his Year 12 academic year, a brand new chapter is waiting to be written in Tokyo.
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