 "Gout Gout ran two wind-assisted sub-10 second 100m race in the same day. Image: Reuters")
Touted as the successor to Usain Bolt’s legacy, Australian sprinter Gout Gout continues to impress with each passing day. The 17-year-old on Thursday made headlines after breaking the 10-second barrier in the 100m twice on the same day.
It’s a massive achievement for Gout Gout who had never registered sub-10 second timings. In Perth, however, he broke the barrier as he recorded a timing of 9.99 seconds in the under-20 100m heat before repeating the same time in the final of the Australian Athletics Championships.
Unfortunately, the timings will not recorded as his personal best as both attempts were assisted by illegally high tailwinds. Gout Gout’s time in the heat was assisted by a 3.5m/s tailwind while his final time was helped by a 2.6m/s tailwind.
Gout Gout breaks 10-second barrier for 100m twice in same day
Nonetheless, it’s a massive achievement for the youngster who has drawn comparisons with sprint legend Bolt .
Gout Gout was compared to Bolt after he took just 20.04 seconds at the Australian schools championships last year to break the 200m national record. This was below Bolt’s timing of 20.13 seconds for 200m at the same age of 16 in 2003.
Even before that, Gout Gout made headlines after he ran the 100m race in just 10.57 seconds in 2022 when he was only 14 years old.
Impact Shorts
More Shorts“That’s what I was hoping for. I didn’t get the start I anticipated but I just focused on what I needed to focus on, got through my drive phase and kept driving and saw the clock, so can’t be happier than that,” Gout said while reflecting on breaking the 10-second barrier.
Talking about comparison with Bolt, the teenager said: “Obviously there are those moments when the media gets too much but, at this moment, I just let it sink in and focus on training, focus on my race and get the job done.”
The recent achievement also highlights Gout Gout’s ability to bounce back as he was recently beaten by fellow compatriot Lachlan Kennedy in the Peter Norman Memorial 200m final.