Australian sprint star Gout Gout to compete in Stawell Gift

Watch out Stawell. One of the Stawell Gift’s biggest drawcards in more than a decade is targeting the iconic race as another opportunity to write himself into the history books.

Schoolboy sprint star Gout Gout wants to win Australia’s richest footrace the Stawell Gift.

The hottest property in Australian sport will travel to country Victoria over Easter to compete in the famous 120m sprint, delivering a much-needed boost to the historic event which has struggled for marquee names in recent times.

Gout, who turned 17 in December, is set to race four times over the Australian season – at the Queensland state titles, the Maurie Plant meet in Melbourne on March 29, the Australian Championships in Perth and then on grass in Stawell on Easter Monday.

Given his national 200m record and 10.04sec 100m performance, the teenager will be running off the scratch mark which history says is almost impossible.

Only two runners in the history of the Stawell Gift – which was first run back in 1878 – have won from scratch, Madagascar’s Jean-Louis Ravelomanantsoa and Athens Oympian Joshua Ross in 2005.

Aussie sprint phenom Gout Gout. Picture: David Clark

The winners of the men’s and women’s Gift receive $40,000 in prizemoney.

Gout’s agent James Templeton said the lure of making history appealed to the Queensland teenager.

“He will come off the nationals, go to Stawell and have a bit of fun,” Templeton said.

“They train on grass at Ipswich Grammar, obviously it will be a little bit different as he hasn’t run professionally in spikes but he will have a crack.

“The 120 (metres) should be a good distance for him given the way he runs the last 40m (of his races). He will be mowing them down.”

The event has lacked a major drawcard for a number of years with Gout’s presence set to create similar hype to when former 100m world record holder Asafa Powell (2013) and world champion Kim Collins (2011) competed.

Former world record holder Asafa Powell competing at Stawell in 2013.

Britain’s Olympic champion Linford Christie travelled to Stawell for the race in 1999 before pulling out injured at the last minute while Olympic bronze medallist Obadele Thompson did make it to the start line.

Cathy Freeman provided one of the most memorial moments in the carnival’s history but not in the Gift. The Sydney Olympic champion won the 400m race in 1996, chasing down the field which had started 50m ahead of her to get up by a whisker on the line.

Gout, who is currently doing Year 12, has just returned from a two-week training camp in Florida where he worked out with 100m and 200m world champion Noah Lyles.

He was also a guest on Lyles’ podcast where he declared he was ready to chase down the reigning champion at this year’s world championships in Tokyo.