Australia's Usain Bolt

He might just be Australia’s answer to Usain Bolt.

Teen running sensation James Gallaugher is clocking up times so impressive that people are comparing his exploits on the track to those of the Jamaican world record holder.

13-year-old Gallaugher competed in Townsville on the weekend and registered 21.73secs for his 200m run, a world best for his age and 0.08sec faster than Bolt ran as a 14-year-old.

The feat has led to Athletics Australia attempting to downplay expectations on the West Australian teenager.

“We don’t want to put too much pressure on a 13-year-old,” said national junior high performance manager Sara Mulkearns.

“He’s in good hands and will definitely be part of our junior programs.

“But he is pretty exciting.”

Gallaugher is originally from the NSW southcoast and has been sought out by at least one NRL club but is happy focusing on athletics under the watchful eye of former Olympian Lyn Foreman at the WA Institute of Sport.

The future of Australian athletics looks bright as the youngster continues his progress towards the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro.