Topics: Athletics, Australia, Usain Bolt, Gout Gout
Australian sprinter Gout Gout's real name was revealed after his father expressed unhappiness over mispronunciation.
The 17-year-old introduced himself to the European stage this week in style as he finished the 200m race in 20.02 sec at the Ostrava Golden Spike in Czechia on Tuesday (24 June).
Many have touted Gout to be the man to break Usain Bolt's world record in the 100 and 200m event.
He first burst on to the scene when he broke the Australian record last year with a 20.04 second finish.
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And in his much awaited debut outside Australia, Gout did not disappoint as he finished ahead of experienced Cuban sprinter Reynier Mena.
Away from the races, Gout's father recently spoke to 7News and revealed the world had been referring to his son with the name spelled and pronounced wrong.
![Gout Gout ran his first European race in a 20.02 sec time [Photo by Morgan Hancock/Getty Images]](https://resizer.ladbiblegroup.com/unsafe/rs:fit:3840:0:0:0/g:sm/q:70/aHR0cHM6Ly9ldS1pbWFnZXMuY29udGVudHN0YWNrLmNvbS92My9hc3NldHMvYmx0YTkwZDA1YWQ0MWE1NGE3MS9ibHQyMjY1OTRiYjdlN2Y1ZWU4LzY4NWJjMWNhMmViNjNkMjRmNTgzNTYxMi9HZXR0eUltYWdlcy0yMjEwOTYwMjU3LmpwZw.webp)
Gout's family fled from South Sudan and ended up moving to Australia, where he was born two years after their arrival in the country.
His father, Bona, revealed that his son's name is actually Guot, but it became Gout due to an Arabic spelling mix-up by the Sudanese government.
Speaking to the Australian news outlet, Bona said: "'His name is Guot, it's supposed to be Guot. When I see people called him Gout Gout, I'm not really happy for him.
"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 also added: "For me, I don't mind whatever you want to call him, Let them call him that [Gout] but for myself, I know his name is Guot, that's what I know.
"His mum is calling him Guot and the same here."
After Gout Gout's recent success and rise to stardom, the 17-year-old's manager James Templeton has stated that the wrong pronunciation will go nowhere.
Templeton told SEN Radio: "Firstly, it is Gout Gout. Yeah, yeah, I know there's been a bit of discussion, and I know his dad made a few comments, but Gout Gout is how it's gonna be.
"Categorically, it's Gout Gout. You know, the thing you hope to avoid in your ankle.
"That's how it's pronounced."
While his father is not too pleased with the pronunciation of his name, he will be happy that his son is being compared to eight-time Olympic gold medallist Bolt.
At 17, he has already ran a 19.84 sec in the 200m race to win the Australian national title, but his timing was not counted as legal due to tailwind of +2.2 metres per second.
He will be competing at the World Athletics Champions in Tokyo, where Gout will for the first time have a chance of proving his ability on a global stage competing against the best.
