A young Australian sprinter caught the world’s attention earlier this month when he surpassed another of Usain Bolt’s records.
Gout Gout became the fastest 16-year-old in history in the 200 metres, achieving an impressive 20.04sec at the Australian All Schools Championships.
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Despite his undeniable talent, Lord Seb Coe, the head of the IAAF, has revealed one thing Gout should be cautious of.
There have been a lot of predictions surrounding Gout’s future, particularly around whether he will go on to break Bolt’s world records in the 100m and 200m.
And Coe has issued a word of warning.
“The toughest transition any athlete is going to make is from the upper echelons of juniors into the senior ranks,” Coe said.
“Any coach will tell you that probably is the toughest element in coaching.
“Identifying talent and nurturing it is a huge part of it. But taking an athlete safely, securely, mentally and physically from 18 and 19 into the early 20s is tough.”
“A lot of athletes that even win World Junior Championships don’t actually make it into their senior national team.”
Coe has also said he is excited about the arrival of the Aussie.
He hopes he can bring a new audience into the sport, much like Jamaican legend Bolt once did.
“He is a huge attraction,” said Coe.
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“You’ve only got to see what response he gets every time he competes. He is clearly an outstanding talent.”
Gout’s time, at the Australian All Schools Championships, was also the second-quickest ever by an Under-18 after Erriyon Knighton’s 19.84sec in 2021.
He also broke Peter Norman’s 56-year-old Australian senior record.
Gout told fans to ‘remember it’ after smashing the Australian 200m record.
He said: “Remember it. I’ve been chasing that record, but I didn’t think it would come this year. I thought it would come maybe next year, the year after that.
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“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). It’s pretty crazy.”
Bolt recently admitted that Gout ‘looks like a young me,’ with the Queensland-born star also proving his potential in the 100m with a 10.04sec.
Gout would unsurprisingly be overjoyed with this comparison from Bolt.
Given that Bolt is widely considered to be the greatest sprinter of all time with eight Olympic gold medals.
Bolt is also the world record holder in the 100 metres, 200 metres, and 4 × 100 metres relay.
Next up for Gout is a training camp with Olympic 100m champion Noah Lyles in Florida in January as he looks to qualify for the World Championships in Tokyo in September.
