Gout Gout obliterated his 200m national record to win in a scorching 19.67 on the final day of the 2026 Australian Athletics Championships on Sunday (12 April).
The 18-year-old sensation brought down the house in Sydney and his previous mark of 20.02 to become the first Australian to break the 20-second barrier. Gout also bested a certain Usain Bolt’s time of 19.93 at the same age from 2004.
Aidan Murphy also went under in 20 seconds, finishing runner-up in a time of 19.88.
Gout’s rival Lachlan Kennedy withdrew from the event a night after winning the 100m champion in a 9.96.
Although the showdown with Kennedy had to be put on ice, Gout did not disappoint in the finale of the four-day meet. He ran a sub-20 last year but with an illegal tailwind.
Not on this day, however, with a wind factor of plus-1.7.
“There’s a big weight off my shoulders knowing I ran it legally, and I have the speed and my body to run times like that,” Gout told reporters following the race. “So it definitely feels great, and ready for more.
“It’s been in my mind this whole year, these past couple of months so glad I got it for sure. I wrote down 19.75 and for the past week in my head I would tell myself, ‘I’m running 19.75,’ and obviously 19.67, so you know – got to love it.”
Gout is passing up the Commonwealth Games this year to focus on the under-20 world championships in Oregon in August.