The stories of Gout Gout and Peter Norman are about more than running fast

Gout Gout!

Wow Wow!

The sixteen-year-old Queenslander is, of course, the talk of the sports world and the toast of Australia after breaking Peter Norman’s record for the 200m, after an extraordinary 56 years.

As we speak, Norman and Gout are book-ending an extraordinary saga of Australian athletic achievement, and if you want a little more detail on the first part of it, to give perspective on the second part, you have come to the right place.

See, in the lead-up to the 2000 Olympics I interviewed Norman in a Melbourne café and recorded his humble story. After winning the 200m silver medal at the 1968 Mexico Olympics in a time of 20.06 seconds, Norman became aware that the black American gold and bronze medallists Tommie Smith and John Carlos were planning to perform a human rights salute.

Peter Norman, Tommie Smith and John Carlos on the podium in Mexico.Credit: AP

The Australian was mightily impressed with their moral courage and, making an instant decision, asked if there was anything he could do to show his support for their cause. Both the Americans were delighted, and John Carlos quickly secured a human rights badge for the Australian to wear – the same badge they were going to wear for the ceremony. This whole notion of the importance of human rights wasn’t anything new to Norman, who came from a Melbourne family that had been heavily involved with the Salvation Army for four generations.

“I had been raised believing in human rights; it was part of my Salvo background,” he told me. “So of course I supported them.”

The two Americans were wearing only black socks on their feet, “to symbolise black poverty”, they would later say, and a very set expression on their faces, like they meant business. And they did.

When they put their fists in the air as the American anthem was played, Norman stood in quiet support, just as he quietly supported them ever afterwards, standing up for racial equality, an end to discrimination, the need for human rights to be observed. When he died in 2006, two of the men carrying his coffin were Smith and Carlos.

Enter Gout Gout, in 2024, and at the Australian All-Schools championship on Saturday, lowering Norman’s record for the 200m to 20.04 seconds! In the process, Gout was demonstrating before our very eyes over half a century later, the virtues of we Australians pursuing the very values that Smith, Carlos and Norman were on about all those years ago.

Australian sprint sensation Gout Gout.Credit: Getty Images

For while there are some who can’t help themselves but to demonise refugees, to endlessly imply (and even say out loud) that they are unworthy of being resettled, welcomed and looked after – something that has particularly applied to Sudanese refugees in recent years – the experience of Gout’s family was quite the opposite. When his parents left wartorn South Sudan two decades ago, their route to Australia was inevitably a circuitous one, coming via a series of refugee camps.

But when they got here, first the government and then kind Australians welcomed them, settled them, and went out of their way to help them. There was no reckoning that native-born Australians were better than them, we were luckier than them, and everything that could be done help them such people from traumatised lands was no more than decency.

Gout found his way to Ipswich Grammar, hit the track running and the rest is history – or at least the beginning thereof. Long may he prosper. The Gout Gout story is one that we, as a country, can be very proud of.

And none would have been prouder than Peter Norman himself.

Test cricket back to its best – only faster

I told yers, but you wouldn’t listen.

Test cricket, I said. It is the real cricket, I said. The memorable cricket, I said.

No, you said. Twenty20 cricket, you said. That’s where the action is, where the mob is going, where the ratings are.

And now look at me! More to the point, look at this Test series between Australia and India – now tied 1-1 after first two matches, in Perth and Adelaide – because everyone else is.

The ratings are up, up, up; ground attendance records have been broken. And everyone is talking about it, because it is fabulous, fingernail-biting, furious cricket that is – get this – memorable.

The bowling of Starc! The look on Yashasvi Jaiswal, as he fell to a “Royal Duck,” the first ball of the innings! The batting of Travis Head! And again, the look on the face of Mohammed Siraj, when Head appeared to ask him how his father was...

Travis Head and Mohammed Siraj embrace after the Adelaide Test.Credit: Fox Cricket

It was, and you know it, Test cricket at its best, and Test cricket as we remember it from the glory days – only faster.

There has been criticism in some quarters that because of the advance of the white-ball game, the ability to build painstaking innings has been lost, and there might be something in that. But if the result is faster-paced action extending over four thrilling days, instead of the downer that was always a drawn Test after five days – I can’t remember the last one, can you? – then it can be no bad thing.

Things changing off the field for Wallabies

No names, no pack drill, but a yonk and a half ago TFF had a contretemps with Wallabies management over a function we at the Cauliflower Club were hosting to honour members of the Australian team before a luncheon crowd of 600 at the Westin. After initially agreeing that half-a-dozen would come, we were advised they were “too tired,” and none would show after all.

I, as they say in the classics, “hit the roof” and unburdened myself of the view that it was a damn disgrace that while 600 hardcore rugby people wanting nothing more than to applaud them for their efforts, not one of the Wallabies themselves could be buggered coming. In the end, six did turn up, and – to be fair to them – were kind enough to personally note how much they enjoyed it.

It still stuck in my craw, however, how difficult it had been to deal with the surly professional class of rugby people, reluctant to embrace the very mob of rugby fans who ultimately sustained them. It was like last year when they held a farewell to the Wallabies before the 2023 World Cup, only for Eddie Jones to refuse to release players.

But, things change.

This week we had a much smaller gathering, and invited six Wallabies from the spring tour to join key supporters of the Cauliflower Club – which raises money to help those grievously injured by sport – as well as various rugby hobnobs like John Eales, Matt Burke and members of the rugby media. The basic idea was to remove some of the barriers that have arisen between rugby supporters and rugby players in the professional age, so we know them as people not just numbers on their backs, and to get rugby people back in the one boat, while thanking TCC’s key supporters who buy tables at our functions and make donations to the cause.

And this is the thing. Taniela Tupou, James Slipper, Andrew Kellaway, Max Jorgensen, Allan Alaalatoa, Jake Gordon and the great Wallaroo Desiree Miller not only turned up on time and stayed long, but could not have been more easy-going, affable or pleased to be there. They were a credit to their jersey, and as far away from surly professionals there by noblesse oblige alone, as it was possible to get.

It felt like the old days!

What They Said

PM Anthony Albanese on the PNG team: “I know it will have millions of proud fans barracking for it from day one. Not just in PNG, but I suspect many Australians will adopt the PNG team as theirs.” Well, the key sponsors are the Australian taxpayers, after all.

Peter V’landys: “Rugby league is the number one sport in the Pacific. This new club will solidify rugby league’s role as the unifying language of our region. There’s 10 million people in PNG, some say 18 million.” Cue: 50,000 people watched the opening Las Vegas NRL match. Some say 100 million.

PNG Prime Minister James Marape, ARLC chairman Peter V’landys and Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese announcing the PNG NRL team.Credit: Kate Geraghty

V’landys.“In 10 years, you will have rugby league as one of the most watched sports in the world because of the population of Australia and PNG. More viewers means more sponsors, more broadcast revenue, more revenue.” Peter? Please. But have a Merry Chrissie.

FFA boss James Johnson on the hunt for the new Matildas coach: “Of course, we have a short list. I mean, we had a long list. We had a short list. We have a very short, short, short, short list. But the reality is we know who we want.”

16-year-old Gout Gout on breaking Peter Norman’s 1968 national 200m record: “It’s pretty crazy. Right now I can’t process it, but I guess tonight when I go to bed, I’ll think about it. These are adults. And me, I’m just a kid, and I’m running them (down). I’ve been chasing that record, but I didn’t think it would come this year. I thought it would come maybe next year, the year after that.”

Gout Gout, on comparisons to Usain Bolt: “I’m just trying to be Gout Gout, obviously I do run like him and I do sometimes look like him but obviously I’m making a name for myself. I think I’ve done that pretty well and I just want to continue doing that and continuing to be not only Usain Bolt but continuing to be Gout Gout.” And he already has referring to himself in the third person, if not fourth person, down pat.

Usain Bolt on Gout Gout: “He looks like young me.”

Comparison between Usain Bolt’s 200m world record and Gout GoutCredit: World Athletics

Travis Head to Mohammad Siraj: “Well bowled, mate.”

Prince Mohammed on Saudi Arabia getting the 2034 World Cup: “We look forward to hosting an exceptional and unprecedented edition of the FIFA World Cup by harnessing our strengths and capabilities to bring joy to football fans around the world.”

Top darts player Luke Humphries on why he doesn’t work with a sports psychologist now: “I don’t want to confuse my brain. I’ve trained it to combat the anxiety and don’t want to start confusing it with different techniques for darts. I’ve become world champion by being myself. I should be able to keep myself there.”

Comedian Steph Broadbridge says she had to cancel her Raygun-inspired musical after receiving letters from the Olympic break-dancer’s lawyers: “They also said I wasn’t allowed to do the dance, because she owns the kangaroo dance.”

Comedian Stephanie Broadbridge has had to ditch the show.Credit: Dylan Coker

Statement from Raygun’s people: “Rachael Gunn’s management and legal team is committed to protecting her intellectual property and ensuring that her brand remains strong and respected. This action is not intended to diminish the contributions of others, but rather to ensure her brand is properly represented and protected in all future endeavours.” Yup. Me, too. I cringe. What started as fun has already descended into lawyers arguing copyright.

Syrian football federation quickly unveiled their new kit: “Our new national team uniform. The first historic change to happen in the history of Syrian sports, far from nepotism, favouritism and corruption.”

New York Jet Garrett Wilson after they again played well for most of the game only to implode. “When you’re up in the fourth quarter [and lose], all of a sudden it starts to feel like you have a losing problem. [It’s like] you have a gene or some shit.”

NZ Racing Minister Winston Peters cancelling greyhound racing by 2026: “This is not a decision that is taken lightly but is ultimately driven by protecting the welfare of racing dogs.”

Rugby Australia’s Dan Herbet: “You have to give the public and all of our stakeholders ... some very lofty ambitions otherwise what are we aiming for? We’re aiming for excellence. High performance in particular is about excellence of winning.”

Greg Norman on LIV Golf moving on from him as CEO: “Because the impact that has been created in the game of golf by LIV, I’ve had a small, small piece of that, which I’m proud of. And now all of a sudden, everybody’s trying to follow us. And I think everybody should take a step back and say, ‘Oh my gosh. How good has this been for the game of golf?’” Honestly, do you think he really believes that? It is no more than the most unwatched half of a major civil war in history.

Team of the Week

Gout Gout. He needs a nickname and I say we go with “Wow Wow!” Simply extraordinary, and he brings to mind the famous Jack Gibson line, “He’s so fast he can turn off the light and be in bed before it gets dark”.

Dawn Fraser. The Olympic swimming great is recovering from a bad fall, up Noosa way.

Sincere McCormick. TFF loves nothing more than a great name and this Las Vegas Raider has a beauty! I think he sounds ... well, you know.

Juan Soto. The baseballer has signed a 15-year U$765 million (A$1.2b) contract with the New York Mets. No, really.

BBL. The 14th instalment kicks off on Saturday. I defy you to tell me who won last year and what happened in the final. Go on, tell us. Or is it just cricket bubble-gum, momentarily pleasing, but instantly forgettable?

Ange Postecoglou. Going through a rough patch at Tottenham. Hopefully he can turn it round.

@Peter_Fitz

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