Usain Bolt Is Fast, But Not Cheetah Fast [Proof]

Usain Bolt is the fastest man on earth but he can’t compete with the world’s fastest cheetah. Sarah, a cheetah from the Cincinnati Zoo recently ran the 100-meter dash in 5.95 seconds. In comparison Usain Bolt set a world record for the 100-meter dash in just 9.58 seconds.

Sarah is regularly clocked at speeds of 60 miles per hour by zoo workers and recently reached 61 mph during a 100-meter dash.

The 5.95 second sprint broke a 2009 record which was also set by Sarah, during that run she covered 100-meters in 6.13 seconds. Before her first record the fastest recorded 100-meter dash by a cheetah came in 2001 when a male from South Africa ran the same distance in 6.19 seconds.

Sarah is no slouch, her running speed at 11-years-old attracted National Geographic which worked to clock her speed and showcase her abilities as part of its Big Cats Initiative.

The awesomeness of Sarah’s run was captured on a track designs by the Road Running Technical Council of USA Track & Field.

So how do you get a female cheetah to run around a course? You have her chase a fluffy toy.

While cheetah’s are extremely fast mammals they can only run very fast speeds for a very short distance before they must lay down to cool their body temperature.

Cheetah’s are currently on the endangered animals list with upwards of 12,000 left living outside of the zoo environment.

This all begs the question…would Usain Bolt be even faster if he chased a furry toy to the finish line?