Aussie sprint sensation Gout Gout has set an Aussie record and personal best as he finished behind Olympic champion Noah Lyles in a 150m race in Czechia.
Gout and Lyles launched into a wild celebration after the American won in a world-record time of 14.67 seconds, with the Aussie crossing the line in 14.96 at the Ostrava Golden Spike event.
The Queenslander’s brilliant run comes after he finished a distant sixth in his debut against the world’s best runners at the Diamond League meet in Oslo, Sweden on June 11.
‘This is definitely a race I was needing after Oslo and I am glad I got it, and I am ready for more,’ Gout told Straight At It.
‘Usually when I get a bad start it’s hard for me to come back, but today I got an OK start and I brought it home.
‘I’m going to enjoy the moment, go back to training and focus on more.’
Pictured: Gout Gout (right) storms home to set an Australian record behind race winner and Olympic 100m champion Noah Lyles (centre) in Czechia
Good mates and training partners Lyles and Gout celebrated wildly after the 150m event
Gout and Lyles – who have struck up a friendship and trained together – had dinner together the night before the event and embraced after the finish.
The Aussie appeared to be lagging at the rear of the field after the start in Czechia before turning on the jets and rapidly gaining ground on Lyles over the last 100m.
Gout had been savaged by his critics after his sub-par outing in the 200m at the Diamond League.
Having looked forward to making his bow against the ‘big boys’, the lanky 18-year-old was swept aside on a cool, blustery evening, clocking only 20.60 seconds, a world away from his world-leading best time of 19.67.
On race eve, Gout had talked of how it was 23-year-old Letsile Tebogo, not Usain Bolt, who’d been his sprint idol growing up.
And it was 23-year-old Botswanan master Tebogo who gave the apprentice a lesson in the lane outside Gout, winning the Diamond League event in 19.84sec, a superb effort on a chilly night and not the quickest of tracks.
Gout was ungainly from the blocks and out of contention as they all hit the bend, his trademark late charge never denting a world-class field, with South African Sinesipho Dambile (20.12) second, Trinidad’s Jereem Richards (20.50) third and Cuban Reynier Mena (20.53) fourth.
They’re all 19.80-second sprinters, so there was no disgrace for Gout and he wasn’t downhearted, beaming: ‘There’s definitely a lot more room for me to improve, but I have plenty of time on my side.
The Aussie teen caught the leaders over the last 100m as he finished in 14.96 seconds
The run in Czechia was a big boost for the teenager after he finished a distant sixth on his Diamond League debut last week
‘I will go back to the workshop and work.
‘There’s always pressure on me, but all I do is try my best and keep focusing on just having fun. I love competing against the big boys and I’ll be back – I put no limits on myself.’
But Tebogo suggested: ‘First and foremost, he should not get comfortable racing with the seniors. He still has a long way to go.
‘He should by all means play with his age mates where he is a bit more comfortable, because the more he runs, the more he pushes and the more injuries he is going to get.’
