Seventeen-year-old sprint sensation Gout Gout delivered a remarkable performance on Tuesday (24 June), setting a new Australian national record in the men’s 200m at the prestigious Golden Spike meeting in Ostrava, Czechia.
Making his international debut, the teenager stopped the clock at 20.02 seconds, storming past a world-class field to claim victory. He finished almost two-tenths of a second ahead of Cuba’s Reynier Mena, who crossed the line in 20.19s, while Team GB’s Nethaneel Mitchell-Blake settled for third in 20.60s.
Men’s 200m Final Results
- Gout Gout 🇦🇺 — 20.02 (AR)
- Reynier Mena 🇨🇺 — 20.19
- Nethaneel Mitchell-Blake 🇬🇧 — 20.60 (SB)
- Tomáš Němejc 🇨🇿 — 20.69
- Ondřej Macík 🇨🇿 — 20.78 (SB)
- Eduard Kubelík 🇨🇿 — 20.87 (SB)
- Ján Volko 🇸🇰 — 20.88
- Jan Jirka 🇨🇿 — 21.12
The performance marked a significant milestone for Gout, whose time lowered the Australian record he had previously set in December. That run had famously broken Olympic silver medallist Peter Norman’s long-standing mark and even surpassed Usain Bolt’s U16 world best. On Tuesday, the teenage sprinter showed that months of hard work and training during his final year of high school studies have further sharpened his abilities.
Known for his powerful finishes, Gout maintained his trademark race pattern — a measured start followed by a blistering surge off the curve. However, in Ostrava, he appeared notably sharper in the first 100 metres, hinting at improved race balance and maturity. Coming off the bend well-placed behind Mena, Gout unleashed a superb final 20 metres to overhaul the Cuban and secure a memorable win.
After a breakout Australian summer, where he unofficially dipped under 20 seconds with a wind-assisted run, Tuesday’s legal and record-breaking performance signals that the teenage star’s march towards the elusive sub-20 mark is well underway.
The Ostrava Golden Spike has long been a stage for future global stars, and with this commanding debut, Gout Gout has emphatically announced himself as one of Australia’s brightest sprint prospects on the international stage.