Olympic icon Usain Bolt had a clear message for rising star Gout Gout
Usain Bolt has urged teenage sensation Gout Gout to stay focused on his ambition of becoming a world-class sprinter. The 18-year-old recently broke the U20 world record at the Australian Athletics Junior Championships, claiming the 200m title in a stunning 19.67 seconds.
The triumph saw Gout set a new Australian record and surpass Bolt’s fastest time as a teenager. He also claimed the 100m title in Sydney but faces tougher challenges in the months ahead.
Gout is due to make his senior Diamond League debut in Oslo in June, where he will go head-to-head with 200m Olympic champion Letsile Tebogo. He will also take on Noah Lyles at the Ostrava Golden Spike meet later that same month.
The teenager’s eye-catching performances have led to many comparisons with Bolt. However, despite the thrilling step up in competition awaiting Gout, the 39-year-old has warned the prodigy not to lose sight of his goals amid the growing attention he is attracting.
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“I think it’s so big a transition [moving from juniors] and to have the right people to help to watch you because when you, at that young age – because I was there – you start getting pulled left and right and then you forget track and field,” Bolt told CNN.
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“So, hopefully, he has the right set of people who actually help to guide him and to keep him focused on track and field because the rest of the stuff will always be there. But if you mess up at track and field, then it all goes away.”
Bolt’s advice arrives at a pivotal moment in the teenager’s fledgling career. Having excelled at junior level, the eight-time Olympic gold medallist is hoping Gout won’t be disheartened by any initial setbacks in senior competition.
“I know it’s going to be an eye-opener,” Bolt explained when discussing Gout’s step up. “And I hope it doesn’t get him down, but motivate him to work even harder.”
The Australian made his World Championships debut in September 2025, reaching the semi-finals. The Commonwealth Games will be held in Glasgow this summer but Gout appears set to compete at the World U20 Championships in Oregon.
The teenager has been constantly compared to Olympic legend Bolt throughout his short career. While that might potentially unnerve some young athletes, Gout welcomes the situation.
“It’s definitely inspiring, because to know that the rest of the world thinks and believes I’m looking like him and could potentially be him is something that can only fill me with confidence,” Gout told the Daily Mail in December. “And to be compared to the greatest athlete I’ve ever seen technically is amazing.
“Hopefully, I can be up to their level and up to the point where we’re being compared because of titles, records, gold medals and stuff like that. My ultimate dream is Olympic gold, hopefully in the 200m in Los Angeles in 2028 and then on to Brisbane in 2032. So it’s pretty cool, for sure.”