Teen star Gout Gout offers verdict on Bolt | Sports News

Rising observe star Gout Gout has opened up concerning the pressures of being likened to the long-lasting Usain Bolt. The 17-year-old prodigy has been shattering information, some beforehand held by Bolt himself, and not too long ago left spectators in awe at a Brisbane occasion the place he recorded this 12 months’s quickest 200m time worldwide.

Gout blazed by way of the 200m in a swift 20.05 seconds, propelled by a favorable +1.2 wind. Although that is simply a hair’s breadth away from his personal best, it stands as the highest international time for 2025.

In dialog with Olympic champions Noah Lyles and Grant Holloway on the Beyond the Records podcast, Gout was questioned about the burden of expectations stemming from comparisons to Bolt. “I’m trying to be the next Gout Gout,” he expressed.

“Obviously being compared to Usain Bolt, everyone wants to be the next star basically and Usain Bolt was the best sprinter, the best athlete.

“So being aggressive, it is clearly great however then I’m Gout Gout so I would like to have the ability to make my identify as huge as his identify after which people youthful may be like ‘you are going to be the subsequent Gout Gout’ so I need to be like that.”

Gout’s remarkable form persisted into Saturday’s competition in Brisbane, where he seized the state under-20 100m title. He clocked in at 10.39 seconds against a slight headwind and improved to 10.38 seconds in the final.

The sprinter wowed audiences with a wind-assisted 10.04 seconds personal best at last year’s Australian All Schools Championships, but his top legal time stands at an impressive 10.17 seconds, positioning him as a contender for the upcoming World Championships in Japan this September.

Recently training alongside Lyles in Florida, Gout not only honed his skills but also achieved a feat that has so far escaped the accomplished US athlete. At the Joanna Stone Shield meet in Brisbane this past February, Gout blazed through the 400m with a time of 46.20s—a full second faster than Lyles’ best and the quickest by an Australian under-18 runner in 35 years.

Gout’s sights are firmly set on future Olympic glory, particularly in his homeland during the Brisbane Games in 2032. He shared his aspirations with fellow athletes Lyles and Holloway: “That’s the tip aim for sure, operating there [Brisbane],” he affirmed.

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“L.A in 2028, I’m wanting ahead to that and I’ll be aiming to move there and the World Championships this 12 months in Tokyo, I’m aiming to qualify clearly, and yeah 2032 is the place I’m at for sure.”

Despite the buzz, his manager James Templeton counseled temperance and discouraged direct comparisons with Usain Bolt, especially so early in Gout’s career. In discussions with ABC Sport, Templeton stated: “I’ve prevented utilizing the ‘UB’ [Bolt] comparability. I believe that is unfair to a younger athlete.

“For 18 months I’ve basically said a blanket ‘no’ to every media outlet in Australia that has asked. We just want to allow him to be a normal kid at school.

“Having seen a lot of great younger athletes and sprinters over time, I’m firmly satisfied he has that one thing a little bit particular to kick by way of to the very highest ranges.”