At the last world athletics championships in Budapest two years ago, there were three Australians with media accreditation. It had been the same at every worlds for two decades; just three people.

This year in Tokyo, there are 20 Australian journalists, photographers and broadcasters accredited and in the stadium covering the event. The Australian allocation was exhausted and five more photographers and writers were refused accreditation. This year there are two broadcasters into Australia: Nine and SBS. That has never happened before.

The difference? A teenage schoolboy.

Sprint sensation Gout Gout is not just an Australian fascination; the world is watching and listening.

Gout, 17, did basically no media before he flew out to Tokyo for the championships, though there was a photo shoot

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