Gout Gout has shattered his own Australian 200m record with an impressive sub-20-second run, a feat that would have left a young Usain Bolt trailing.

At just 18 years old, Gout clocked an astonishing 19.67 seconds during the national athletics championships held at Sydney Olympic Park. This achievement made him the first Australian to officially break the 20-second barrier in the 200m event on Sunday.

In a remarkable performance, Gout surpassed the legendary Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt’s under-20 record of 19.93 seconds, set back in 2004. His time is a mere 0.02 seconds shy of the all-time under-20 record, which was established by American sprinter Erriyon Knighton in 2022.

The young athlete from Queensland also obliterated his previous national record of 20.02 seconds while defending his title. Notably, runner-up Aidan Murphy also broke the 20-second mark with a time of 19.88 seconds on the same day.

This is just the latest in a series of records for the highly-touted teenager. Previously, he broke Peter Norman’s long-standing Australian 200m record from 1968 by recording a time of 20.04 seconds in 2024.

Gout had previously run a time of 19.84 seconds with the assistance of an illegal tailwind in Perth last year, during which he claimed the national 200m championship title for the first time.

“I’ve been chasing it ever since I got that illegal sub-20,” Gout said on Sunday.

“It’s been on my mind this whole year and these past couple of months.

“For the past week, in my head, I would tell myself I’m running 19.75, and obviously 19.67, so, you know, gotta love it.”

Gout said his sizzling run in Sydney was a statement to the athletics world.

The 18-year-old pulled out of the Commonwealth Games to focus on the 200m at the world under-20 championships in Oregon, which start on August 5, three days after the Games end.

Gout will be out to raise the stakes again in Oregon, given sprint king Bolt had kicked off his record-breaking career with 200m gold at the 2002 world juniors.

“It’s a big weight off my shoulder knowing that I ran it legally, and I have the speed and body to run times like that,” Gout said.

“I’m still only 18, just turned 18, so I definitely think I can go faster for sure.”

Gout’s great rival Lachlan Kennedy wasn’t in the 200m field, withdrawing from the event after running 9.96 for the second time in as many days to win his first national 100m title on Saturday night.

“I was very itchy (watching Kennedy) for sure. Obviously props to Lachie,” Gout said.

“He told me it’s all me, so I did my thing for sure.”

In other results on Sunday, middle-distance star Jessica Hull (15:13.21) claimed victory in the 5000m after withdrawing from the 800m due to soreness.

Hull had lost her 1500m title to Claudia Hollingsworth after tripping while trying to defend a challenge from the 20-year-old rising star.

Hollingsworth was pipped on the final straight in the 800m final on her 21st birthday, outpaced by back-to-back winner Abbey Caldwell (1:58.57).

Defending high jump world champion Nicola Olyslagers cleared 1.99m on her third attempt to claim victory, with Eleanor Patterson (1.93m) settling for second.

But pole vaulter Kurtis Marschall endured a nightmare outing and failed to make a height.

Two-time world champion bronze medallist Marschall fell short of 5.46m at three attempts, with Jack Downey (5.24m) taking victory.

Peter Bol held off a challenge from youngster Luke Boyes to win his fifth-straight national 800m title in 1:45.60, prevailing by 0.13 seconds.

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