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Junior athletes in Australia led by Gout Gout need to be handled with glove hands for them to develop into world beaters.
Sprint sensation Gout Gout and other junior Australian athletes need support and protection for them to grow and become world beaters according to Athletics commentator Mitch Dyer.
Gout Gout, 16, Broke Usain Bolt's 200m record at the same age as Peter Morman's 56-year-old record on December 7, but Dyer feels the budding athletes need to be galvanised from scrutiny and excessive attention if they have to conquer the world heading into the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics and the 2032 Brisbane Games.
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11:59 - 23.12.2024
'Embarrassing' - Newspaper issues grovelling apology after unforgivable front page Gout Gout blunder
The Age newspaper got itself in hot water and the publication has made apology for embarrassing blunder on Gout Gout.
"We need to wrap our arms around them and really support them and their personalities, support the people they are and give them that encouragement to be the best version of themselves," Dyer told Australian Morning news.
While the Brisbane Olympics are still years away, Australia boasts of a plethora of talent including Torrie Lewis, Cameron Myers, Peyton Craig, Claudia Hollingsworth, Delta Amidzovski and Izobelle Louison-Roe. The aforementioned names are tipped to rub shoulders with their more experienced opponents in the national championships in April and World Championships in September 2025.
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08:00 - 26.12.2024
'I can’t put a number on it' - Olympic champion Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone stays tight-lipped on dipping sub-50 in 400m hurdles
Sydney McLaughlin has improved her time every time she's been on track, prompting questions abot dipping under-50 seconds.
Dyer's optimism is born from the fact that Athletics made the headlines in Australia multiple times in 2024. Nina Kennedy won a gold medal in the pole vault at both the Paris Olympics and the World Championships. Jessica Hull broke the world 2,000-metre record and claimed an Olympic silver medal, finishing just behind the greatest of all time Kenya's Faith Kipyegon.
While 16-year-old Gout Gout broke the country's longest-standing senior record in the men's 200m, it feels like there's a shift in the sport, where Australians — who used to only associate with athletics once every four years — have really started to take notice.
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