Tokyo: Expectation is still yet to collide with reality. The stunning, inexorable rise of the precocious star Gout Gout is gathering pace, not fading.

The 17-year-old sprinting phenomenon made it out of his heat into a semi-final at his first major championship – something Usain Bolt didn’t do.

The year 12 Ipswich schoolboy who has breezily collected sprint records like they are rare vinyl, clicked past another premature milestone, getting out of the heats at his first major open age championships while still a junior.

Gout finished third in 20.23 seconds in the 200 metres of the World Athletics Championships in Tokyo. His semi-final is on Thursday night AEST.

“It’s great experience. I mean, running against the big dogs, you know, it’s great – I’m just excited for more,” Gout said.

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