Gout Gout forces Stawell Gift to consider historic break to 148-year tradition in the Easter classic

Stawell Gift officials are investigating the possibility of breaking 148 years of history for event drawcard Gout Gout, as the teen sprint sensation appears for his first appearance at the race.

Stawell Gift officials are investigating the possibility of breaking 148 years of history and having a crash bag placed after the finishing gates to cater for event drawcard Gout Gout.

The safety of the hottest property in Australian athletics is the priority and the finish area at Central Park is tight, particularly for the backmarkers who are on the inside lane.

Crash bags are used at the world indoor championships for 60m events with the athletes only having a short distance to stop themselves after crossing the finish line.

There is a wire fence just metres from the finishing gates at Stawell and given Gout’s extraordinary closing speed, officials have discussed a number of contingencies.

Gout and his main rival, Australia’s fastest man Lachlan Kennedy, will have a closed training session on Friday night on the 120m grass track to see if the crash bags are required.

Australian sprint sensations Lachlan Kennedy and Gout Gout will hold a closed training session on Friday ahead of the Stawell Gift. Picture: Getty Images

Stawell Gift spokesman Trent Taylor confirmed a final decision would be made after the two star athletes had a look at the track.

“There is talk of a crash bag but I don’t think we’re going to need it,” he said. “We’re just putting all these contingencies in place in case they actually need them.

“We actually looked at moving the fence but we can’t do that unfortunately . . . we’re going to close the track on Friday night so Gout and Lachie can have a run.

“I think they’re going to be fine but we’ve got solutions which we don’t think we will need.”

There was a push to have Gout (1m) and Kennedy (0.25m) re-handicapped after their heroics last weekend at the Australian championships in Perth but the fact their times were wind-assisted saved them from being adjusted for the Gift.

Gout broke the magical 10-second barrier twice, clocking 9.99sec in the heat and final of the U/20 100m, before producing a stunning 19.84sec in the open 200m final with a +2.2 metre per second tail wind, just outside the legal limit.

Kennedy clocked a career-best 10.00sec in the heat of the open 100m before being beaten by just five thousandths of a second in the final by Rohan Browning, running 10.01sec.

The presence of the 17-year-old Queensland schoolboy in Stawell over the Easter weekend has already seen a 30 per cent spike in ticket sales with a crowd of around 6000 expected on Easter Monday, more than double last year’s attendance.

Prominent businessman Sandy McGregor has financed Gout’s appearance in Stawell with the star sprinter also to be a drawcard at Sunday’s Stawell Gold Cup race meeting.

McGregor, the majority owner of 2015 Melbourne Cup winner Prince of Penzance, grew up in Stawell and saw a great opportunity to give the town a boost by getting the biggest star in Australian sport to the Easter carnival.

Gout’s main duty at the races will be the present the award for the Don Murphy Cup, an egg and spoon race for kids.

Rising sprint sensation Gout Gout has become a favourite of the Australian public. Picture: Getty Images

“We’ve never seen this level of interest before,” Taylor said. “Just speaking to the people we speak to each year and they say everyone is coming.

“The locals don’t always come to the Gift but I think he (Gout) has definitely shifted the needle on local engagement which is good.

“Sandy is bringing his business partners, industry leaders from his network so there are going to be a whole bunch more people who are going to see it for the first time because of Gout which is good.”

Many famous athletes have made the trek to Stawell with mixed results including Olympic champion Linford Christie, former world 100m record holder Asafa Powell, American sprint star Jon Drummond and former 100m world champion Kim Collins.

Originally published as Gout Gout forces Stawell Gift to consider historic break to 148-year tradition in the Easter classic