Who is Faster?

Usain Bolt to this day still holds the world record as the fastest man with a record time of 9.58 seconds to run a distance of 100 meters. "Usain Bolt will be left much of the cheetah," said Craig Sharp, a scientist from the Centre for Sports Medicine and Human Performance at Brunei University, London, in the journal Veterinary Record, Tuesday.

Usain Bolt vs. Cheetah. Who's faster?

Humans can run at top speeds of 37.6 kilometers per hour (23.4 mph), a cheetah can run up to 104 kilometers per hour (64 mph). "Several times faster than the world's top runners," said Sharp. Pronghorn antelope can run at speeds of 89 kilometers per hour (55 mph).

Even an ostrich is the fastest bird on earth can won the gold medal when participating in a race in the 100 meters Olympic running event. How not, ostrich can run up to 64 kilometers per hour (40 mph).

If animals can participate in athletics, a cheetah can complete the numbers 100 meters run in just 5.8 seconds, while Bolt to 9.58 seconds.

In the pool, both Ryan Lochte and Michael Phelps may have some competition; sailfish can reach a swimming speed of 108 kilometers per hour (67 mph).

Here's a look at some possible line-ups if some other animals were to participate in the Olympic Games:

• Bolt ran 100 meters in 9.58 seconds compared with the 5.8 seconds it would take a cheetah to cover that same distance.
• Bolt ran 200 meters in 19.19 seconds, while a cheetah could sprint that distance in 6.9 seconds, a Black Caviar racehorse would gallop the same in 9.98 seconds, and a greyhound in 11.2 seconds.
• Retired American sprinter and gold medalist Michael Johnson ran the 400 meters in 43.18 seconds. The greyhound? 21.4 seconds. A racehorse? 19.2 seconds.
• Kenyan runner David Rushida, world-record holder for the 800 meters, ran that distance in 1 minute, 41 seconds. That's compared with a 33-second time for the pronghorn antelope and 49.2 seconds for a greyhound.
• An endurance horse could blow marathon record holder Patrick Makau Musyoki (finishing in 2 hours, 3 minutes and 38 seconds) off the course with a finish time of 1 hour 18 minutes and 29 seconds.
• World champ Mike Powell is known for his record-breaking jumps, reaching 8.95 meters (29.36 feet) in the long jump, but that's nothing for a red kangaroo, which can leap 12.8 m (41.99 feet).
• The animal kingdom also has a strong contender for the high jump: The snakehead fish can leap 4 m (13 feet) out of the water, easily snatching the medal from athlete Javier Sotomayor, who jumps to 2.45 m (8 feet).

Even Olympic weightlifters would have to contend with some fierce competition from the African elephant, which can lift 300 kilograms (661 pounds) with its trunk and carry 820 kg (1,807 pounds), the grizzly bear, which can tote some 455 kg (1,003 pounds), and the gorilla, which can lift a whopping 900 kg (1,984 pounds). *** [MDS | KORAN TEMPO 3959]

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