Featured Image Credit: Getty
Topics: Athletics, Usain Bolt, Gout Gout
Chris Nee
Sprint phenom Gout Gout has a huge future ahead of him and continues to hit milestones at a younger age than the greatest sprinter of all.
Usain Bolt did it all. The Jamaican, now 39, has eight Olympic gold medals to his name and holds the world records for both the 100m and 200m men's events.
As part of the Jamaica team at the 2012 London Games, he also holds the world record for the 4 x 100m relay.
It is, by any reasonable sporting measure, a decent haul.
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But even the top dogs can find the next big thing nipping at their heels and Bolt's domination won't last forever. If Gout Gout has anything to do with it, the new guy is tearing right around the bend at full pelt.
The attentions of athletics experts have been locked on to the 17-year-old for some time and he's on track to become a truly elite sprinter.
That comes with a certain amount of pressure to stay fit, healthy and competitive at a formative time in any young man's life, but knocking off Bolt's age-level times is bound to put him in the spotlight.
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Gout Gout turns 18 in December, though, and his sights are now set on the real thing.
The Australian has been credited with supercharging Australian interest in the 2025 World Athletics Championships, which get underway in Tokyo on Saturday.
According to The Guardian, two broadcasting partners will be showing the action free-to-air and Australia has more than twice as many accredited journalists in Tokyo as it did in Budapest two years ago.
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If Gout Gout, already the national 200m record holder, is the driving force behind Australia's elevated intrigue about this month's worlds in Japan, one pundit believes viewers could be in for a treat.
Bruce McAvaney, a legitimate titan of Australian sports broadcasting, believes another Bolt milestone could soon fall to Gout Gout.
"He may be 17, but I think it’s possible for him to reach the 200m final in Tokyo, which would be an extraordinary achievement at his age," said McAvaney. "Even Usain Bolt couldn't do that."
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The iconic broadcaster clarified that the Australian team as a whole is the reason for the country's interest in the event in Tokyo.
"A world championship is as great a challenge as an Olympics," he said. "But this Australian team boasts as much depth as I can remember."