16-year-old sprint prodigy Gout Gout shatters Australian U18 100m national record at All-School Athletics Championships

16-year-old track and field athlete Gout Gout broke the Australian U-18 100m record on Friday, December 6. He clocked an impressive 10.17 seconds at the All Schools Athletics Championships currently taking place at the Queensland Sports and Athletics Centre.

Gout bettered the previous record of 10.27s held by Sebastian Sultana by a margin of 0.10 seconds and is currently sixth on the all-time list. This performance came during the 100m final, as Gout took the gold. Josiah John and Jackson Moule followed in 10.48s and 10.60s, respectively.

Gout performed similarly during the heats, clocking 10.04s to qualify for the semifinals. Though this was a faster time than the final, the wind speed during this event was more than the legal 2.0m/s limit, owing to which this time will not be penned down in the national record books.

After his impressive run in the final, Gout said he had looked to break the national record for some time. He said (via Athletics Australia),

"I’ve been chasing this national record for a while now! In the heat, I thought I got it, but it was a crazy tailwind, so I just did the same thing and got the job done."

Gout Gout is experiencing a purple patch in the 2024 track season. He clinched two titles, the 100m and the 200m, at the Queensland All-School Championships last month. He also impressed at the U20 Worlds where he clinched a silver medal in the 200m with a time of 20.60 seconds.

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Gout Gout opens up about his future track targets

Gout celebrating after his victory in the U18 100m final in the 2024 All Schools Athletics Championship (Image via: Getty Images)

Gout Gout recently opened up about his track aspirations he wishes to fulfill in the coming years.

In an interview, Gout stated that his next target will be to try and break Peter Norman's record in the 200m. The 16-year-old also said he is aiming to get as fast as possible in the coming years. Gout said (via The Sydney Morning Herald),

"There are stepping stones we wish to complete, so the first will obviously be the Peter Norman national 200m record, 20.16s. And after that just getting faster and obviously the big milestone is sub-20s. And after that, just keep getting faster."

Gout also mentioned his aspiration to show his worth to the world.