Teenager Gout Gout set a new Australian record with victory in the men’s 200m on his senior international debut at the Golden Spike meeting in Ostrava.
The 17-year-old clocked 20.02 seconds in a highly anticipated first European meeting in the Czech Republic.
The sprinter powered past Portuguese-based Cuban Reynier Mena, who had to settle for second after winning the last two Diamond League 200m races.
Britain’s Nethaneel Mitchell-Blake finished third with a season’s best 20.60.
Gout has been compared to legendary eight-time Olympic gold medallist Usain Bolt, and his 200m time in Ostrava was better than that of Jamaica’s world record holder, who finished in 20.28 on his first Golden Spike meet in 2006.
However, Gout is yet to run a legal time under 20 seconds, which Bolt achieved four months before his 18th birthday with a 19.93 in Bermuda.
Gout’s previous personal best was 20.04, which he ran last December to break Olympic silver medallist Peter Norman’s long-standing Australian record.
Gout has stepped up to senior level after dominating youth meetings. – BBC