Gout Gout, the 17-year-old Australian sprint sensation, will make his senior international debut this week at the Ostrava meeting in the Czech Republic. The race marks an important step on his athletics journey, as he faces a formidable field of professional sprinters for the first time on European soil.
Gout, who attends Ipswich Grammar School, has travelled to Europe during his mid-year break to compete in Ostrava and the upcoming Diamond League meet in Monaco. His programme is designed to prepare him for the Tokyo World Championships in September, which he has identified as his main goal for the season.
“The main goal of the season is obviously world championships. Let’s see what I can do on the world stage against professional athletes. Hopefully I can run fast and perform well,” Gout said in the Czech Republic.
The teenager has drawn comparisons to sprint great Usain Bolt due to his style and record-breaking performances, including the Australian 200m record of 20.04s and wind-assisted sub-20s times. Bolt himself has acknowledged the similarities, and the Ostrava meet has deep links to the Jamaican star, who ran a meet record 19.83s there in 2008.
“It definitely feels great, I’ve heard that a lot of sprinters run here really good. I know Usain Bolt ran here nine times, so the event clearly has a great tradition. Who doesn’t want to be Usain Bolt? Being compared to him feels great but I would like to put my personality in the upcoming story,” Gout added.
The 200m field in Ostrava includes Cuban Reynier Mena, who has won Diamond League meets this year, and Britain’s Nethaneel Mitchell-Blake, an Olympic bronze medallist in the relay. Gout said he has been working on his strength and starts since the Australian season ended, and is looking forward to testing his progress against top-level competition.
