Have you heard about Gout Gout? The 16-year-old Australian sprinter is crushing it! At the All-Schools Championships in Brisbane, he broke Peter Norman’s 200m national record, which had been untouched for 56 years. Can you believe it? Gout ran 20.04s, just 0.02s faster than Norman’s 20.06s, which he set during the 1968 Olympics.

And get this, Norman’s moment was historic, too, with the Black Power salute alongside Tommie Smith and John Carlos. But now, it’s Gout’s time to shine. Who saw that coming?

What’s crazy is how chill Gout is about it. He was like, “These are adult times, and me, just a kid—I’m running them.” And we get it! He didn’t even expect to run that fast, but here he is, holding Australia’s fastest-ever 200m time. Isn’t that wild? Plus, he’s now the second-fastest under-18 sprinter in the world, behind Erriyon Knighton. And did you catch that even Michael Johnson’s giving him props? That was indeed epic after Usain Bolt’s comment.

When World Athletics shared Gout Gout’s incredible achievement on their X account, Michael Johnson was quick to weigh in, and his words were spot on. He said, “Great performances! Fun to think about his potential. But even with such great potential, realizing it is a whole different thing. The greater the potential, the higher the risk. He’ll need a solid team around him to help him navigate the journey.”

Pretty powerful, right? It’s not every day you get such high praise from a legend in the sport. And speaking of legends, Usain Bolt also gave a nod to Gout earlier, calling him someone he’s being compared to. Bolt even went so far as to say, “He looks like young me,” which is no small compliment coming from the fastest man in history. So, why did Bolt say that about Gout? Was it just because he broke Norman’s record? Not exactly!

Gout didn’t just break the Australian record on December 8; he even beat Bolt’s world age-16 best of 20.13 from 2003. That’s huge! But with all the competition out there, and considering Gout’s still so young, it makes you wonder, who’s got the real edge here? Could Gout eventually be more talented or achieve even greater things than those he’s being compared to? It is still very premature to be speaking about his prospects in the sport, but based on what he is displaying on the track, many are even convinced that he certainly has what it takes to put his mark in the sprinting arena; even some legends have made a statement.

Is Gout Gout the next Usain Bolt?

Gout Gout, the soon-to-be 17-year-old, has been making some serious noise. More recently, he did 10.04s (wind-aided) in the 100m, which ranks as the fourth fastest time ever achieved in Australia even with the wind assisting. Next, to win in the final, he obliterated the legal Under-18 national record by running a very impressive 10.17 seconds. Is this young fellow capable of becoming Australia’s next sprinting sensation? Measuring 6ft 2in and with his crazy speed, he is being dubbed the new Usain Bolt. And the talk is not only about the fact that some of them challenge these records—some are predicting he could dominate the 2032 Olympics in Brisbane, indicating that he could seize both the 100-meter and 200-meter tracks. How far can Gout go with this kind of talent?

However, the Australian phenomenon is not only followed by Australians. Gout, for instance, not long ago penned a new 200m record in the U20 World Championships in Peru with a 20.60 seconds performance. Simultaneously, he achieved this just 0.01 of a second slower than the record set by Usain Bolt in 2002. But even Bolt could teach a lesson or two on how talent, no matter how exceptional, is inadequate to get to the pinnacle of success.“When I started out, I didn’t understand the concept of ‘being great’ because I was young,” he said in an interview. “I was 15 when I won the world juniors; I was really young, and I was really talented, so I didn’t have to work as hard as it was just talent.”

Here, however, Gout is not aspiring to be the best or even settling for second best; it is just staying plain humble despite the eager comparisons. He understands that the journey is going to be arduous, but if he can get to Bolt’s standard, then surely that would be something. He took it to the next level when former sprinter Matt ‘Shirvo’ Shirvington said, “He will be the greatest athlete we have ever produced in this country. Saying that hands down,” Shirvo added. “And I honestly believe a lot of people are comparing him to the G.O.A.T., Gout to the G.O.A.T., who is Usain Bolt, of course. I think he’s got more. I think he’s got more to produce the goods.” At 16, Gout’s performances are already putting him on the map, and with each race, it feels like he’s moving closer to something bigger. Will Gout Gout really become Australia’s greatest sprinter? The signs certainly point that way.