Australian sprinter Gout Gout out after hamstring tear

Australian teenage sprint star Gout Gout will miss the remainder of the 2026 season, including the World Athletics U20 Championships, after suffering a severe hamstring tear in training. The 18-year-old announced the injury on social media on Thursday, July 9, 2026, revealing he sustained the setback to his left hamstring during a session in Brisbane on Wednesday night.

Medical scans confirmed a grade 3C tear, described as a partial thickness tear of the hamstring tendon extending over an eight-centimeter length. This diagnosis rules him out of the World U20 Championships in Eugene, Oregon, scheduled for August, an event for which he had forgone the upcoming Commonwealth Games in Glasgow. Gout expressed his disappointment but stated his acceptance of the situation, noting that injuries are part of the sport. He said his focus is now on rehabilitation with the aim of returning stronger in 2027.

The injury halts a remarkable ascent for the Queenslander. In April, he broke the under-20 world record for the 200 meters with a time of 19.67 seconds at the Australian national championships, a mark that surpassed the best time run by Jamaican legend Usain Bolt at the same age. Gout won...