This is Gout Gout's free hit. It will probably be his only one.

This is Australia's teenage sprinting phenomenon's first chance to race the world's fastest men while he is still a boy.

This is also the world's chance to see Gout. The 17-year-old is the fascination of world athletics, not just an Australian preoccupation. He is Australia's great hope, and a great wonder to the rest of the world.

Who is this kid doing Bolt-like things? The world athletics championships, which start in Tokyo next Saturday, are the first chance to see Gout live against the world's best and Australia's chance to see performance collide with hope, and hype.