Giving Usain Bolt Aura, Gout Gout’s Parents Clear Big Misunderstanding in Track and Field Community

At just 16 years old, Gout Gout has taken the sprinting world by storm, drawing comparisons to the legendary Usain Bolt after delivering record-breaking performances at the Australian All Schools Athletics Championships. In the 100m heats, Gout clocked an impressive 10.04 seconds, showcasing his potential to become the fastest-ever U18 sprinter in the event. However, due to an illegal tailwind of 3.4 m/s, the time could not be officially recognized.

Despite this, the young Australian has earned the nickname “the next Usain Bolt,” and his rising fame has sparked curiosity about his unique name. In a surprising revelation, Gout’s father, Bona Gout, explained the story behind the name that has become the talk of the track and field community. As it turns out, “Guot Gout” is the young sprinter’s real name, which he simplified for public recognition.

Gout’s father makes a surprising confession

Every parent feels a sense of pride when their child achieves greatness, but for Bona Gout, this pride comes with a tinge of frustration due to a misunderstanding about his son’s name. While Gout’s record-breaking performances on the track have captured global attention, his father is disheartened by the widespread misrepresentation of his name.

“When I see people calling him Gout Gout, I’m not really happy for him,” Bona shared in an interview with 7NEWS. The name confusion traces back to a clerical error made when the family emigrated from South Sudan to Australia. Bona explained that his son’s name is pronounced “Gwot” which carries significant meaning in their native language, symbolizing strength and resilience. However, due to a mistake in paperwork during their migration, the name was mistakenly recorded as ‘Gout.’

This misrepresentation is particularly troubling for Bona because of the association the word ‘Gout’ has with an inflammatory arthritis disease that causes severe pain in the joints. “I know that Gout Gout is a disease name, but I don’t want my son to be called a disease name. It’s something that’s not acceptable,” he emphasized.

Guot turned to Gout due to a mix-up of Arabic spelling by the Sudanese government when Bona Gout and his wife Monica Gout fled to Egypt. Their destination was supposed to be Canada, but as the Australian government acted fast, their destiny landed them in Brisbane, where Gout Gout was born. Gout’s parents have told 7NEWS that they have found a solution, and they will ‘fix it’ soon. Bona reiterated, “It’s culturally very important, and in particular if (family) see Guot Guot running, they connect to the name, but when they hear Gout Gout, they’ve lost the meaning of it.”

However, fans are calling Gout Gout—the ‘GOAT GOAT’ (greatest of all time); with that, “Gout of this world” is also in trend. Bona said, “Let them call him that, but for myself, I know his name is Guot; that’s what I know. His mom is calling him Guot, and the same here, I call him Guot” Amidst this name debacle, the Australian sprinter is now being compared to the legend Usain Bolt.

Is the Australian sprinter ‘the next fastest man alive’?

Even if Gout’s father is not very happy about his son’s name being misunderstood; Gout Gout is making headlines and being compared with the legend of track and field. He started 2024 with a bang—a 200m PR of 20.69 seconds in January. With that, the 16-year-old sprinter was able to achieve a 10.04-second 100m sprint in the heats. However, despite the technical rule of tailwind that made his run illegal, he is being compared with the ‘fastest man alive’ Usain Bolt.

A track and field enthusiast even commented, “Exactly how Usain Bolt used to run. Took a while to wind up those long giraffe legs, then bang!” The way Gout starts slow, his similar stride, and his ability to pull off after the 50m mark reminded everyone of Bolt.

Gout clocked 10.17 seconds and surpassed Sebastian Sultana’s record of 10.27 in the 100m final of the All School Championships in Brisbane. With this, Gout became the sixth-fastest U18 sprinter in history. After the win, Gout said, “I’ve been chasing this national record for a while now. In the heat, I thought I got it, but it was a crazy tailwind, so I just did the same thing and got the job done.”

Having said that, his comparison with Usain Bolt is not entirely absurd. Do you know? As per the World Athletics records, Bolt ran with a wind-legal 10.03 seconds in 2007—at Rethymno Vardinoyiannia, Rethymno, Greece, when he was 20 years old. So, if the Australian can come close to these statistics at the age of 16 only, then he surely can go miles. With all the comparisons and speculation, Guot Gout and not Gout Gout is dominating the U18 scoreboard. Only time will tell if he will be the next ‘fastest man alive.’