11-year-old 'fastest' cheetah breaks own land speed record

Washington, August 3 (ANI): The fastest cheetah on Earth has broken her previous world record for the 100-meter dash, setting a new best time of 5.95 seconds.

The feat surpassed the fastest of all human 100m racers by almost four seconds, CBS News reported.

Usain Bolt holds the human world record at 9.58 seconds in the 100m dash.

Cheetahs, of course, are built to run faster than humans, regularly clocking speeds of up to around 60 miles per hour.

During a photo shoot with National Geographic Magazine, Sarah, a cheetah from the Cincinnati Zoo, covered 100 meters at 61 mph.

The sprint broke her previous world record, set in 2009 when she ran the same distance in 6.13 seconds - breaking the previous record that was set in 2001, when a male South African cheetah named Nyana ran 100 meters in 6.19 seconds.

Sarah is 11 years old and is part of the zoo's Cat Ambassador Program. Sarah's sprint was documented with funding from the National Geographic's cat conservation effort the 'Big Cats Initiative.'

The record-breaking run took place on a course designed by the Road Running Technical Council of USA Track and Field, where she chased a fluffy toy lure around the course, breaking the record on her very first sprint.

The secret to cheetah speed is in its long, flexible spine, which allowed the animal to cover up to 22 feet (6.7 meters) on every stride.

They also vary their strides per second as they speed up, taking more strides per second as they run faster.

Cheetah's sharp claws also act like cleats when they run, giving them traction. (ANI)