The Fastest Kid You've Never Heard Of: Gout Gout is Redefining Speed

Illustration by Conner Phillips

Australia’s Sporting Future: The Rise of Gout Gout

The 17-year-old sprinting sensation from Queensland is rewriting the rule book—and he’s only getting started. This is the story of Gout Gout.

Let’s clear something up first. While his name legally reads “Gout Gout,” that’s only due to a paperwork error by the Sudanese government when his family fled to Egypt during the Second Sudanese Civil War in 2005. His real name is meant to be “Guot Guot,” pronounced “Gwot.” His parents are currently working through the process to restore the correct spelling, so don’t be surprised if those vowels get flipped in the coming years. The last thing most people associate with the word “gout” is elite-level sprinting—so the name change can’t come soon enough.

After escaping Sudan, his parents initially intended to settle in Canada. But quicker intervention from the Australian government led them to Queensland, where Gout was born in 2007—one of seven siblings. His talent became evident early. At just 14 years old, he clocked 10.57 seconds in the 100m, breaking the Australian under-16 record. A year later, he shattered the under-16 200m record. Then, in 2023 at just 15, he won the Australian Junior Athletics Championship with a 20.87-second 200m—before even turning 16.

In March 2024, Gout won the U18 Boys 100m at the Queensland Athletic Championships with a personal best of 10.29 seconds. One month later, he claimed the U20 100m title in Adelaide with a time of 10.48—still only 16. Before his 17th birthday, he was representing Australia at the U20 World Athletics Championship in Lima, Peru, where he took silver in the 200m with another personal best of 20.60 seconds.

October 2024 was pivotal. Gout won both the 200m and 400m titles at the GPS Track & Field Championships. That same month, he signed his first contract with Adidas, set the Oceanian U20 200m record, and became the fourth fastest Australian of all time in the event—joining names like Usain Bolt in the history books. In December, he ran 10.04 in the 100m, the fourth-fastest U18 time globally and the fifth-fastest in Australian history. The next day, he ran a blistering 20.40 in the 200m—becoming just the second U18 athlete to eclipse Usain Bolt’s time at that age. He broke both the Australian and Oceanian U18 records in the process.

2025 has been strong as well. Gout won the 200m title at the Australian Athletics Championships in April and captured the 200m title at the Golden Spike Ostrava—his European debut.

Despite not even turning 18, Gout Gout has already won two international U18 titles, four national U18 titles, three U20 competitions, and one senior national championship. His story is one of perseverance and promise. His parents fled civil war for a better life, and now their son is showing the world that greatness knows no borders.

Though born and raised in Australia, Gout proudly represents his South Sudanese heritage. He’s become a symbol of both nations—an athlete redefining what’s possible for his age group and a future Olympic contender for 2028 in Los Angeles. As the fastest Australian in the 200m, Gout Gout isn’t just a name to remember. He’s a name destined for greatness.