MELBOURNE: Claudia Hollingsworth upset recently-crowned world indoor 1500m champion Georgia Hunter Bell in Melbourne on Saturday while Paris Olympic pole vault gold medallist Nina Kennedy made a triumphant return from injury.

But sprint sensation Gout Gout was beaten into second over 200m by fellow Australian Lachlan Kennedy who also won the 100m at the Maurie Plant meet — the first of 11 World Athletics Gold-level events this season.

Britain’s Bell arrived in Australia fresh from Poland where she roared to gold at the World Athletics Indoor Championships on last Sunday.

But she ran out of puff against 2026 world leader Hollingsworth.

She made her move with 200m left and Hunter Bell was unable to reel in the 20-year-old Australian who finished in 4:01.30.

Australia’s Kennedy missed the entire 2025 season after a hamstring operation, but was in top form despite coming off a three-quarter run-up as she eases her way back.

She cleared 4.72 metres to out-jump American twin sisters Hana Moll (4.46) and Amanda Moll (4.36).

Gout Gout, 18, burst on the scene in 2024 when he clocked 20.04 seconds in the 200m at the Australian All Schools Athletics Championships.

It shattered Peter Norman’s national record of 20.06 from the 1968 Olympics and was the quickest ever by a 16-year-old, earning him comparisons to Usain Bolt.

But he failed to fire as rain fell, edged into second by Kennedy (20.38). Kennedy also won the 100m (10.03), a race Gout skipped.

“I was pretty fried (after the 100m), so I knew I had to hit it hard and just pray,” said Kennedy.

The men’s discus was one of the standout events and Matthew Denny, the second-best thrower in history, reigned supreme, reaching 67.51m to easily beat Britain’s Lawrence Okoye (65.09) and Jamaican Olympic champion Roje Stona (64.60).

In other events, Australian world champion Nicola Olyslagers cleared 1.95m to win the women’s high-jump while American star Jacory Patterson clocked 44.41 in his first 400m of the year.

Patterson broke 44 seconds three times last year, highlighted by a personal best 43.84 to win the Diamond League final in Zurich.

World under-20 mile record holder Cameron Myers was also in top form, running a sizzling 3:30.42 to emphatically take the men’s 1500m.

It was the fastest time over the distance ever in Australia and the quickest by anyone globally this season.

Published in Dawn, March 29th, 2026