Gout's fight against the wind, still faster than Bolt

Australia’s sprinting sensation, 17-year-old Gout Gout, has once again amazed the world. The teenager, originally from South Sudan, claimed the Australian senior championship title in the 200 meters and clocked the second-fastest time in history among under-20 athletes in the final. Not even the fastest man of all time, Usain Bolt, ran this distance as quickly during his teenage years — the Jamaican’s best time at that age was 19.93 seconds.

Gout’s 19.84 seconds on the track in Perth would not only have been a national record for Australia but also the world’s best time of the season. However, the result won’t be recognized officially due to an illegal tailwind of 2.2 meters per second. According to World Athletics regulations, sprinters — as well as long jumpers and triple jumpers — are not allowed to have an average tailwind speed of 2.0 m/s or more for a record to count.

Amazingly, just a few days earlier at the Australian U20 Championships, Gout ran an identical time of 9.99 seconds in the 100 meters — twice in one day. He broke the 10-second barrier for the first time in the semifinals and then repeated it in the final. But again, both races had slightly illegal tailwinds — 2.4 meters per second.

That Gout follows his own path and stands apart from many elite athletes is clear from what he said after these incredible performances, despite his times not being officially recognized:

"Reaching top speed quickly is my gift, and I used it to ‘take off’ and cross the line in under 20 seconds. I’ve been chasing the magical 10-second barrier in the 100 meters for a long time, and now I’ve finally hit it. It feels really good — I couldn’t be happier — and I understand that this is the road I have to take to become a world and Olympic champion," said Gaut, unfazed by the fact that the wind disqualified his results from official records.