Gout broke the 200m under-20 world record while also being faster than Usain Bolt at the same age.
Published April 12, 2026
Teenage sprinting sensation Gout Gout broke the under-20 world record in the 200m dash, finishing in a time of 19.67 seconds to win the Australian Athletics Championships.
Gout became the first Australian to break the 20-second barrier in Sydney on Sunday, completing the record-breaking feat faster than Jamaican great Usain Bolt at the same age.
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Fellow Australian Aidan Murphy also broke the 20-second mark, taking second place with a time of 19.88 seconds. This was the second fastest time this year, and both times were achieved with legitimate tailwinds.
“This is what I’ve been waiting for,” Gout said at the Sydney Olympic Park Athletic Center.
“Australia has great athletes. I get to race with them too and we push each other to our limits. We have two Australians under 20, so this is great.”
Gout’s incredible effort, with a tailwind of +1.7m per second legal, meant the 18-year-old defended his 200m title and issued a warning to his rivals.
He also surpassed the U-20 world record set by Elyon Knighton and broke his own national record of 20.02 seconds, set last year.
Gout’s time is the first time he has broken under 20 seconds under legal conditions since last year’s national championships, when he clocked 19.84 seconds with the help of a tailwind.
The 18-year-old burst onto the scene in 2024, clocking 20.04 seconds at the Australian Athletics Championships.
This broke Peter Norman’s national record of 20.06 seconds set at the 1968 Olympics and was the fastest ever for a 16-year-old.
He had improved his time to 20.02 seconds, but had never legally gone below 20 seconds.
His time was faster than Bolt, who ran 19.93 seconds at the same age in 2004.
“It’s a huge weight off my shoulders knowing I ran legally. I have the speed and body to run times like that, so it’s definitely a great feeling and I’m ready to run more,” Gaut said.
“I ran 19.75 seconds. And all week I’ve been saying to myself, I’m running 19.75 seconds. Of course I’m going to like 19.67 seconds.”
Gout’s run came on the final day of competition after his main rival Lachlan Kennedy withdrew from the 200m race as a precaution, with his management citing the need to manage his workload early in a long season.
Despite this, Kennedy won Saturday’s 100m dash in 9.96 seconds, replicating the form he used in the heat to become the first Australian to run under 10 seconds in his home country.
Kennedy’s withdrawal has deprived fans of the most intense racing since last month’s Morley Plant event, when Kennedy won a duel with gout.
Gout, the son of South Sudanese immigrants, has attracted global attention for his rapid growth and running style, drawing comparisons to Bolt, who has emerged as one of the sprinting world’s most exciting young talents.
