Australian sprint sensation Gout Gout will not run at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow this year, instead prioritising the World Under-20 Championships three days later.
With the cluttered sports calendar, the World Under-20’s start in Eugene, Oregon, just days after the Commonwealth Games finish, and the turnaround is too tight for him to do both.
Gout Gout competing at last year’s World Athletics Championships in Tokyo.Credit: Getty Images
“It is (a big decision). It’s a great event (the Commonwealth Games), and it’s one of those big meetings everyone loves. But looking at it, it is definitely a better decision going for the World Under-20’s,” Gout told Channel Seven, who will be host broadcaster of both events.
“(Eugene) is one of the fastest tracks, I believe, and there is going to be fast times there, so I am looking forward to it,” Gout added.
“There is always room for improvement, so that’s the goal I had: faster, stronger, better.
“Honestly, it is one of the best things in the world just going out there running, tearing up the track. It feels good.”
Gout won silver in the 200m at the 2024 World Under-20 Championships when he ran a 20.60s. The runner who beat him then is 18 months older than him.
Gout has since run 19.84s with an illegal wind. His legal personal best of 20.02s for the 200m was recorded in June last year in the Czech Republic at his first-ever race in Europe.
Now that Gout is 18, this year’s World Under-20’s – previously called the World Juniors – will be his last chance to compete at the event, and potentially win an individual gold in the 100m or 200m, something no Australian has done before.
“We want him to be running in his late 20s, so you don’t want to push the boundaries too soon … it’s just the fact they (the Commonwealth Games and World Under-20s) are so close together,” his coach Di Sheppard said.
For Gout, the excitement has not dulled since he burst onto the scene as a schoolboy in Brisbane 18 months ago at the All Schools championships, when he ran a personal best time of 10.04s for the 100m with an illegal wind. He then ran a legal 10.17 and broke the Australian under-18 record in the final.
The next day, in the 200m final, he ran 20.04 seconds. It was the second-fastest run ever recorded by an athlete before their 18th birthday, behind only Erriyon Knighton, and quicker than Usain Bolt ran at the same age. His time also broke Peter Norman’s long-standing open-age Australian record, which was set at the Mexico Olympics when he won silver.
Last year, Gout made the semi-final of the 200m at the Tokyo World Championships.
His goals beyond Eugene, Oregon, for the World Under-20’s in August are all centred on major world meets, particularly the LA and Brisbane Olympics.
“LA in two years time, then hopefully Brisbane in 2032. I’ll be 24 turning 25. Prime time,” Gout said.
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