Australian sprint phenom Gout Gout breaks record in professional debut

On Tuesday afternoon in Ostrava, Czechia, 17-year-old Australian sprint sensation Gout Gout made his much-anticipated professional debut outside of Australia, and he delivered. Gout stormed to a 200m personal best and Australian national record of 20.02 seconds (0.0 m/s), stunning the athletics world once again.

Dream European debut ✨

Watch 🇦🇺’s Gout Gout power to 20.02 in the men’s 200m at @ZlataTretra 😎

First senior race abroad ✅First race ever in Europe ✅First senior win abroad ✅Breaks area record ✅ #ContinentalTourGold pic.twitter.com/6FSW00Y933

— World Athletics (@WorldAthletics) June 24, 2025

The teenage prodigy surged past Cuba’s Reynier Mena in the final 50 metres to beat his own national record, previously set at Australia’s high school championships last December. Mena, who entered the race in top form after winning the 200m at the Stockholm Diamond League last week, was no match for Gout’s top speed.

What made Gout’s performance even better was how much room he still has to grow. Despite getting a good start, his bend acceleration wasn’t flawless, and he had no wind advantage. Neither setback stopped him from unleashing his trademark long stride in the home stretch to power past Mena and British Olympian Nethaneel Mitchell-Blake.

Gout’s time just missed the meet record of 19.83 seconds, set by Usain Bolt in 2008 at the same Golden Spike event, now in its 64th edition.

At just 17 years and 178 days old, Gout is inching closer to Bolt’s early-career benchmarks. At the same age, Bolt clocked 19.93 seconds at the 2004 CARIFTA Games in Bermuda, setting a world U20 record at the time. American sprinter Erriyon Knighton currently holds the U20 world record of 19.69 seconds.

Gout’s next race will be on Friday, July 11, at the Monaco Diamond League, where he is entered in the men’s U23 200m. All eyes will again be on this electrifying teen as he continues his rise.