LONDON, July 27 - Barely known outside the state of Louisiana a couple of months ago, Xavier Carter finds himself suddenly the hottest property in athletics at the height of the European season.

At the age of 20 Carter, who runs over 200 metres at the London grand prix on Friday, has produced two eye-catching performances this year which link him with two of the great names in the sport.

In early June, Carter won four gold medals at the National Collegiate Athletic Association championships, equalling the mark set by Jesse Owens in 1935 and again in the following year when he went on to win four at the Berlin Olympics.

Carter won an unprecedented 100-400 double, competing in the latter race only 30 minutes after winning the first. He added gold medals in the 4x100 and 4x400 relays.

Then last month Carter again startled the sporting world when he clocked 19.63 seconds over the 200 at the Lausanne grand prix.

It was the second fast time ever after Michael Johnson's 19.32 seconds at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics, a mark expected to last for several decades. Carter was running only his second 200 of the season from lane eight where he would have had no idea where the test of the field were.

Even Johnson, the only man to win the Olympic 200-400 double and still the world record holder for both events, was never a contender at 100, although he raced a few times in a non-championship year.

Marion Jones completed a 100-200 double at the 2000 Sydney Olympics and picked up a third gold medal in the 4x400 relay squad.

Carter played high school basketball and football as a wide receiver at Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge before opting this year to take his chances as a professional track and field athlete.

He signed a contract with a leading shoe company, bypassed the U.S. championships, received his first passport, and is currently on his first trip outside the United States.

At a news conference in London on Thursday, Carter said he planned to break 20 seconds again against a field including world silver medallist Wallace Spearmon and the impressive young Jamaican Usain Bolt.

"I plan on breaking 20 again," he said. "It's another elite field, almost the same as Lausanne. Whoever wins it's going to be a fast time."

Carter also said he thought he could break Johnson's 200 record.

"It's within my reach, I don't think it's impossible," he said.