Australian sprint sensation Gout Gout has pulled out of the 2026 World Athletics U20 Championships and will be sidelined for the rest of the year after suffering a serious hamstring tear.
The 18-year-old had set his sights on becoming a 200m under-20 world champion in August but will now be forced to watch from afar after announcing the shock injury news in a social media post.
“Unfortunately I suffered an injury to my left hamstring last night at training in Brisbane,” Gout said on Instagram.
“I received this morning the MRI report, unfortunately the news is not good and I will not be able to compete in Eugene at the World U20 championships next month.”
Gout revealed the significance of the injury and that the scans had shown a grade three tear with more than 8cm of his hamstring affected.
“There is partial disruption of the tendon which involves less than 10% of the cross-sectional area of the tendon but extends over an 8cm length,” he quoted from the scan report.
The teenager broke the under-20 200m world record at the Australian nationals in April with a time of 19.67s which was later formally ratified by World Athletics in the face of mounting scepticism.
Gout took silver behind South Africa’s Bayanda Walaza in the 200m at the World U20 Athletics Championships in 2024 when finishing in 20.60s while running as a 16-year-old.
More recently Gout made his Diamond League debut in Oslo in June, when he struggled out of the blocks and could only finish sixth in the 200m. He also finished third behind training mate Noah Lyles in a rarely contested 150m race last month before returning to Australia to continue training.
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“I’m very disappointed but I have no other possibility but to accept the situation,” he said. “I understand this is part of athletics.
“My focus now will be on my rehab in the coming weeks and months and ensuring I come back in 2027 better and stronger and faster.”
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