What is the fastest swimming animal?
Fastest animals
The fastest land animal is the cheetah, which has a recorded speed of . The peregrine falcon is the fastest bird and the fastest member of the animal kingdom with a diving speed of . The fastest animal in the sea is the black marlin, which has a recorded speed of .
Nothing in the Rules
Iantha and the sea lion are the only competitors in the final race, the other contestants refusing to get in the water with an animal. The sea lion, coaxed by rewards of fish at the end of each leg, proves much faster than even the mermaid. It is winning handily until Mark and a couple girls from Herb's swim team run in with bowls of goldfish. Spiking the pool with these, they completely distract the creature from any thought of finishing the race, with the result that Iantha is once again victorious. Connaught is livid, but, as with entering a mermaid, there is nothing in the rules against putting fish in the pool. Mark lets the referee and the coaches fight it out and attends to Iantha, now extremely inebriated, sitting on the edge of the pool, paddling her flukes in the water, and eating some of the goldfish. She whacks the sea lion across the head when it tries to steal some, and again breaks out into song. Mark convinces her to return to her wheelchair, albeit with difficulty, but in picking her up misjudges her weight; both fall into the pool, and Iantha, thinking he is being playful, nearly drowns him responding in kind.
Evgeny Rylov
At the World Championships in July 2017, Rylov broke the European record in the 200 m backstroke with a time of 1:53.61. defeating the reigning Olympic Gold Medalist Ryan Murphy in the process. The swim places Rylov as the sixth fastest man to ever swim the 200 m backstroke while only Aaron Piersol, Ryosuke Irie, Ryan Lochte, Mitch Larkin and Tyler Clary have swum faster.
Bras d'Or Lake
After demonstrating their airplanes using tricycle landing wheels and other innovations, Bell's laboratory on Beinn Bhreagh designed and built a hydrofoil boat- the HD4 - which set a water speed record of 71 MPH (63 knots) in 1919. , an experimental 1960s-era Canadian Forces hydrofoil, reportedly the world's fastest warship ever built, was named in honour of the hydrofoils tested long before on Baddeck Bay by Bell.
List of Central American and Caribbean Championships records in swimming
The Central American and Caribbean Championships records in swimming are the fastest ever performances of swimmers from the Caribbean and Central American region, which are recognised and ratified by the CCCAN. All times are swum in a long-course (50m) pool.
Eamon Sullivan
Sullivan became the fastest swimmer in history after he broke the world 50 m freestyle record at the 2008 NSW Open Championships at Sydney International Aquatic Centre. He timed 21.56 to slash 0.08 off the 21.64 set by the Russian Alexander Popov at Moscow in June 2000. However his time was beaten to 21.50 by French Alain Bernard on 23 March 2008. He significantly improved his last PB standing at 22.00 s. He declared he had had positive feelings of being in a good form for the race earlier on. Shortly after, he swam for West Coast club in the 4 × 100 m freestyle Relay and clocked 48.11 s, cutting 0.07 off Michael Klim record set for Australian relay at the 2000 Olympics. His time was also a Commonwealth record, knocking 0.06 s off the previous time gained by South African Roland Schoeman.
Crocodile
Crocodiles can move quickly over short distances, even out of water. The land speed record for a crocodile is measured in a galloping Australian freshwater crocodile. Maximum speed varies between species. Some species can gallop, including Cuban crocodiles, Johnston's crocodiles, New Guinea crocodiles, African dwarf crocodiles, and even small Nile crocodiles. The fastest means by which most species can move is a "belly run", in which the body moves in a snake-like (sinusoidal) fashion, limbs splayed out to either side paddling away frantically while the tail whips to and fro. Crocodiles can reach speeds of when they "belly run", and often faster if slipping down muddy riverbanks. When a crocodile walks quickly, it holds its legs in a straighter and more upright position under its body, which is called the "high walk". This walk allows a speed of up to 5 km/h.
Cretoxyrhina
A study by Ferron (2017) analyzed the relationships between the morphological variables including the skeleton and tail fin of "C. mantelli" and calculated an average cruising speed of and a burst swimming speed of around , making "Cretoxyrhina" possibly one of the fastest sharks known. For comparison, the modern great white shark reaches speeds of up to and the shortfin mako, the fastest extant shark, has been clocked at a speed of .
Although no fossil evidence for it has been found, it is heavily implied that "Cretoxyrhina" was ovoviviparous as all modern mackerel sharks are. In ovovivipary, young are hatched and grow inside a parent's womb while competing against litter-mates through cannibalism such as oophagy or egg eating. As "Cretoxyrhina" inhabited oligotrophic and pelagic waters where predators such as large mosasaurs like "Tylosaurus" and macropredatory fish like "Xiphactinus" were common, it is likely that it also was an r-selected shark, where large numbers of infants are produced to offset high infant mortality rates. Similarly, pelagic sharks such as the great white shark, thresher sharks, mako sharks, porbeagle shark, and crocodile shark produce two to nine infants per litter.
César Cielo
Cielo is the current world record holder in the 100-metre and 50-metre freestyle (long course). His gold medal at the 2008 Summer Olympics, in the 50-metre freestyle competition, is Brazil's only Olympic gold in swimming to date. In 2008, he broke the NCAA record in the freestyle (18.47 seconds) and in the freestyle (40.92 seconds). Cielo became the fastest swimmer in the world in the two distances, and was named NCAA Swimmer of the Year for the second year in a row.
Ophthalmosaurus
Calculations suggest that a typical "Ophthalmosaurus" could stay submerged for approximately 20 minutes or more . The swimming speed of "Ophthalmosaurus" has been estimated at 2.5 m/s or greater, but even assuming a conservative speed of 1 m/s, an "Ophthalmosaurus" would be able to dive to 600 meters and return to the surface within 20 minutes.
Raptor (robot)
Raptor is a bipedal robot which was designed and conceived in 2014 by the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST). It has a top speed of 28.58 miles per hour, making it the second fastest robot after the Cheeath, and the fastest bipedal robot worldwide. Designers at the KAIST took their inspiration from the Velociraptor, a bipedal dinosaur which balances itself with its tail. The robot moves itself with a pair of carbon / epoxy composite blade legs.
List of Democratic Republic of the Congo records in swimming
The Democratic Republic of the Congo records in swimming are the fastest ever performances of swimmers from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, which are recognised and ratified by the Fédération de Natation en République Démocratique du Congo.
Whale
Whales have two flippers on the front, and a tail fin. These flippers contain four digits. Although whales do not possess fully developed hind limbs, some, such as the sperm whale and bowhead whale, possess discrete rudimentary appendages, which may contain feet and digits. Whales are fast swimmers in comparison to seals, which typically cruise at 5–15 kn, or ; the fin whale, in comparison, can travel at speeds up to and the sperm whale can reach speeds of . The fusing of the neck vertebrae, while increasing stability when swimming at high speeds, decreases flexibility; whales are unable to turn their heads. When swimming, whales rely on their tail fin propel them through the water. Flipper movement is continuous. Whales swim by moving their tail fin and lower body up and down, propelling themselves through vertical movement, while their flippers are mainly used for steering. Some species log out of the water, which may allow them to travel faster. Their skeletal anatomy allows them to be fast swimmers. Most species have a dorsal fin.
Greenland shark
As an ectotherm living in a just-above-freezing environment, the Greenland shark has the lowest swim speed and tail-beat frequency for its size across all fish species, which most likely correlates with its very slow metabolism and extreme longevity. It swims at a leisurely , with its fastest cruising speed only reaching . Because this top speed is only half that of a typical seal in their diet, biologists are uncertain how the sharks are able to prey on the faster seals. It is hypothesized that they may ambush them while they sleep.
Cetacean surfacing behaviour
"Porpoising", also known as running, is a high speed surface behaviour of small cetaceans where long jumps are alternated with swimming close to the surface. Despite the name, porpoising behaviour is seen in dolphins and porpoises, as well as other marine species such as penguins and pinnipeds. When marine mammals are travelling at speed they are forced to stay close to the surface in order to maintain respiration for the energetic exercise. At leisurely cruising speeds below 4.6 m/s, dolphins swim below the water's surface and only briefly expose their blowholes along with up to one third of their body at any one time. This results in little splashing as they have a very streamlined shape. Porpoising occurs mainly when dolphins and porpoises are swimming at speeds greater than 4.6 m/s. Here, jump length is roughly equal to distance traveled when the cetaceans are submerged. This exposes the blowhole for longer which is needed to get enough oxygen to maintain metabolism and therefore high speeds over long periods of time. Studies have also shown that leaping is more energetically efficient than swimming above a certain threshold speed. This is due to the reduction in friction when travelling in air compared to water which saves more energy than is needed to produce the leap. These benefits also outweigh the energy wasted due to the large amount of splashing often seen when groups are porpoising. Porpoising is therefore a result of high speed swimming which cetaceans use for important pursuit and escape activities. For example, dolphins may be seen porpoising away from their main predator, sharks or the direction of incoming boats to avoid collision.
Cheetah (Wild Adventures)
Cheetah is a wooden roller coaster by Custom Coasters International, located in the African Pridelands Section of the Wild Adventures theme park, in Valdosta, Georgia. The coaster was named after the Cheetah, the fastest land animal, because of its top speed reaching 65 mph when the coaster first opened, but after years of friction and track deformation the coaster was recorded in 2009 reaching a top speed of 52 miles per hour. It has a standard out and back layout with five bunny hops and a figure-eight ending. Built in 2001, Cheetah is the largest roller coaster at Wild Adventures. In Wild Adventures off season between 2009 and 2010, the Cheetah was given a $1.3 Million renovation by Martin & Vleminckx replacing the track on the figure-eight and smoothing out the rest of the track.
List of Mediterranean Games records in swimming
The fastest times in the swimming events at the Mediterranean Games are listed by International Mediterranean Games Committee (CIJM) as a list of Mediterranean Games records in swimming. The events are held in a long course (50 m) pool. The list has been updated after the last Games, held in Tarragona, Spain in 2018.
SSC Tuatara
The Tuatara is named after the reptile, found only in New Zealand, known for having the fastest molecular evolution of any living animal.
List of Mauritian records in swimming
The Mauritian records in swimming are the fastest ever performances of swimmers from Mauritius, which are recognised and ratified by the Federation Mauricienne De Natation.
List of Guinean records in swimming
The Guinean records in swimming are the fastest ever performances of swimmers from Guinea, which are recognised and ratified by the Fédération Guinéenne de Natation et Sauvetage.
Shortfin mako shark
The shortfin mako shark ("Isurus oxyrinchus"), also known as the blue pointer or bonito shark, is a large mackerel shark. It is commonly referred to as the mako shark, as is the longfin mako shark ("Isurus paucus"). The shortfin mako is on record as the fastest-swimming shark, capable of bursts of speed up to .
Slingsby Channel
Through the Slingsby Channel flows the world's strongest current, the Nakwakto Rapids, that has been measured at speeds up to 18.4 miles per hour. The current is so fast at times, that people have tied a rope to Turret Rock, which is located right in the middle of the rapids, and then water-skied.
Allan do Carmo
Allan Lopes Mamédio do Carmo (born 3 August 1989) is a Brazilian swimmer, who specialized in open water marathon. He is considered one of the fastest professional open water swimmers in the world, finishing near the top of FINA World Cup races for the 10 km marathon. He also won a bronze medal for his category at the 2007 Pan American Games in Rio de Janeiro.
List of Greek records in swimming
The Greek records in swimming are the fastest ever performances of swimmers from Greece, which are recognised and ratified by the Hellenic Swimming Federation (KOE).
Myelin
Functionally equivalent myelin-like sheaths are found in several invertebrate taxa including Oligochaete, Penaeid, Palaemonid, and Calanoids. These myelin-like sheaths share several structural features with the sheaths found in vertebrates including multiplicity of membranes, condensation of membrane, and nodes. However, the nodes in vertebrates are annular; i.e. they encircle the axon. In contrast, nodes found in the sheaths of invertebrates are either annular or fenestrated; i.e. they are restricted to "spots." It is notable that the fastest recorded conduction speed (across both vertebrates and invertebrates) is found in the ensheathed axons of the Kuruma shrimp, an invertebrate, ranging between 90 and 200 m/s (cf 100–120 m/s for the fastest myelinated vertebrate axon.)
List of World Championships records in swimming
Both events are organized by the international governing body for aquatics, FINA. These are the fastest times ever swum at any edition of the meet.
Jellyfish
Using the moon jelly "Aurelia aurita" as an example, jellyfish have been shown to be the most energy efficient swimmers of all animals. They move through the water by radially expanding and contracting their bell-shaped bodies to push water behind them. They pause between the contraction and expansion phases to create two vortex rings. Muscles are used for the contraction of the body, which creates the first vortex and pushes the animal forward, but the mesoglea is so elastic that the expansion is powered exclusively by relaxing the bell, which releases the energy stored from the contraction. Meanwhile, the second vortex ring starts to spin faster, sucking water into the bell and pushing against the centre of the body, giving a secondary and "free" boost forward. The mechanism, called passive energy recapture, only works in relatively small jellyfish moving at low speeds, allowing the animal to travel 30 percent farther on each swimming cycle. Jellyfish achieved a 48 percent lower cost of transport (the amount of food and oxygen consumed, versus energy spent in movement) than other animals in similar studies. One reason for this is that most of the gelatinous tissue of the bell is inactive, using no energy during swimming.
European water vole
The water vole is the UK's fastest declining mammal and efforts are under way to protect it and its habitat from further destruction. One aspect of water vole conservation in the UK is focused on non-linear habitats such as reed bed which support extensive networks or metapopulations. Other areas supporting healthy populations of water voles are large conurbations such as Birmingham and London and some upland areas where American mink are scarce. Across the UK the Wildlife Trusts and other organisations are undertaking many practical projects to conserve and restore water vole populations.
List of Bolivian records in swimming
The Bolivian Records in swimming are the fastest times ever swum by an individual from Bolivia. These records are maintained by Bolivia's national swimming federation: la "Federación Boliviana de Natación" (FEBONA).
List of Nicaraguan records in swimming
The Nicaraguan records in swimming are the fastest ever performances of swimmers from Nicaragua, which are recognised and ratified by the Fedaracion de Natacion de Nicaragua.
Renzo Tjon-A-Joe
Renzo Tjon-A-Joe is a Surinamese swimmer who mainly swims in 50 m and 100 m freestyle events. He competed at the 2016 Summer Olympics and is the fastest swimmer in Surinamese history.
List of Papua New Guinean records in swimming
The Papua New Guinean records in swimming are the fastest ever performances of swimmers from Papua New Guinea, which are recognised and ratified by Papua New Guinea Swimming.
Billfish
In 1936 the British zoologist James Gray posed a conundrum which has come to be known as Gray's paradox. The problem he posed was how dolphins can swim and accelerate so fast when it seemed their muscles lacked the needed power. If this is a problem with dolphins it is an even greater problem with billfish such as swordfish, which swim and accelerate faster than dolphins. In 2009, Taiwanese researchers from the National Chung Hsing University introduced new concepts of "kidnapped airfoils and circulating horsepower" to explain the swimming capabilities of swordfish. The researchers claim this analysis also "solves the perplexity of dolphin's Gray paradox". They also assert that swordfish "use sensitive rostrum/lateral-line sensors to detect upcoming/ambient water pressure and attain the best attack angle to capture the body lift power aided by the forward-biased dorsal fin to compensate for most of the water resistance power."
Yellow perch
Perch are commonly active during the day and inactive at night except during spawning, when they are active both day and night. Perch are most often found in schools. Their vision is necessary for schooling and the schools break up at dusk and reform at dawn. The schools typically contain 50 to 200 fish, and are arranged by age and size in a spindle shape. Younger perch tend to school more than older and larger fish, which occasionally travel alone, and males and females often form separate schools. Some perch are migratory, but only in a short and local form. They also have been observed leading a semianadromous life. Yellow perch do not accelerate quickly and are relatively poor swimmers. The fastest recorded speed for a school was 54 cm/s (12.08 mph), with individual fish swimming at less than half that speed.
List of Asian records in swimming
The Asian records are the fastest times ever swum by a swimmer representing a member federation of the Asia Swimming Federation (AASF), Asia's governing body of swimming.
Fastest animals
While comparing between various classes of animals, a different unit is used, body length per second for organisms. The fastest organism on earth, relative to body length, is the South Californian mite "Paratarsotomus macropalpis", which has a speed of 322 body lengths per second. The equivalent speed for a human running as fast as this mite would be . This is far in excess of the previous record holder, the Australian tiger beetle, "Cicindela eburneola", the fastest insect in the world relative to body size, which has been recorded at or 171 body lengths per second. The cheetah, the fastest land mammal, scores at only 16 body lengths per second while Anna's hummingbird has the highest known length-specific velocity attained by any vertebrate
List of Burundian records in swimming
The Burundian records in swimming are the fastest ever performances of swimmers from the Burundi, which are recognised and ratified by the Federation Burundaise de Natation.
List of Algerian records in swimming
The Algerian Records in swimming are the fastest times ever swum by a swimmer representing Algeria. These records are kept/maintained by the Algeria's national swimming federation: "Fédération Algerienne de Natation" (FAN).
List of Gambian records in swimming
The Gambian records in swimming are the fastest ever performances of swimmers from The Gambia, which are recognised and ratified by the Gambia Swimming & Aquatic Sports Association.
List of Brazilian records in swimming
The Brazilian records in swimming are the fastest ever performances of swimmers from Brazil, which are recognised and ratified by Brazil's national swimming federation: Confederação Brasileira de Desportos Aquáticos (CBDA).
Bio-inspired robotics
In 2014 "iSplash"-II was developed by PhD student Richard James Clapham and Prof. Huosheng Hu at Essex University. It was the first robotic fish capable of outperforming real carangiform fish in terms of average maximum velocity (measured in body lengths/ second) and endurance, the duration that top speed is maintained. This build attained swimming speeds of 11.6BL/s (i.e. 3.7 m/s). The first build, "iSplash"-I (2014) was the first robotic platform to apply a full-body length carangiform swimming motion which was found to increase swimming speed by 27% over the traditional approach of a posterior confined waveform.
Aquatic locomotion
All cephalopods can move by jet propulsion, but this is a very energy-consuming way to travel compared to the tail propulsion used by fish. The relative efficiency of jet propulsion decreases further as animal size increases. Since the Paleozoic, as competition with fish produced an environment where efficient motion was crucial to survival, jet propulsion has taken a back role, with fins and tentacles used to maintain a steady velocity. The stop-start motion provided by the jets, however, continues to be useful for providing bursts of high speed - not least when capturing prey or avoiding predators. Indeed, it makes cephalopods the fastest marine invertebrates, and they can out accelerate most fish. Oxygenated water is taken into the mantle cavity to the gills and through muscular contraction of this cavity, the spent water is expelled through the hyponome, created by a fold in the mantle. Motion of the cephalopods is usually backward as water is forced out anteriorly through the hyponome, but direction can be controlled somewhat by pointing it in different directions. Most cephalopods float (i.e. are neutrally buoyant), so do not need to swim to remain afloat. Squid swim more slowly than fish, but use more power to generate their speed. The loss in efficiency is due to the amount of water the squid can accelerate out of its mantle cavity.
Aerial locomotion in marine animals
Porpoising is high-speed swimming close to water surface with many leaving and re-entering the water nose-first. Dolphin, Penguin, and Seal porpoise in the wild. Dolphin saves energy at high speed porpoising. Penguin porpoises in group for long distance traveling. Seal porpoises as group play
List of Ethiopian records in swimming
The Ethiopian records in swimming are the fastest ever performances of swimmers from Ethiopia, which are recognised and ratified by the Ethiopian Swimming Federation.
List of Laotian records in swimming
The Laotian records in swimming are the fastest ever performances of swimmers from Laos, which are recognised and ratified by the Lao Swimming Federation.
Penny Lee Dean
Dean is perhaps best known for her world record for the fastest swim across the English Channel in 1978 in a time of 7:40, shattering the previous record by over 1 h and 5 mins. The record stood for both men and women for until September 1995 when it was lowered to 7:17 by Chad Hundeby, whom she coached.
List of Taiwanese records in swimming
The Taiwanese records in swimming are the fastest ever performances of swimmers from Republic of China (Taiwan, ROC), competing as Chinese Taipei, which are recognised and ratified by the Chinese Taipei Swimming Association.
Dolphin
Dolphins have two pectoral flippers, containing four digits, a boneless dorsal fin for stability, and a tail fin for propulsion. Although dolphins do not possess external hind limbs, some possess discrete rudimentary appendages, which may contain feet and digits. Dolphins are fast swimmers in comparison to seals which typically cruise at ; the killer whale (orca), in comparison, can travel at speeds up to . The fusing of the neck vertebrae, while increasing stability when swimming at high speeds, decreases flexibility, which means they are unable to turn their heads. River dolphins, however, have non-fused neck vertebrae and are able to turn their head up to 90°. Dolphins swim by moving their tail fin and rear body vertically, while their flippers are mainly used for steering. Some species log out of the water, which may allow them to travel faster. Their skeletal anatomy allows them to be fast swimmers. All species have a dorsal fin to prevent themselves from involuntarily spinning in the water.
List of Djiboutian records in swimming
The Djiboutian records in swimming are the fastest ever performances of swimmers from Djibouti, which are recognised and ratified by the Fédération Djiboutienne de Natation.
List of Trinidad and Tobago records in swimming
The Trinidad & Tobago Records in Swimming are the fastest times ever swum by a swimmer representing Trinidad and Tobago. These records are kept/maintained by Trinidad & Tobago's national swimming federation: the Amateur Swimming Association of Trinidad and Tobago (ASATT). Records are recognized for long course (50m) and short course (25m) events:
Speedo
Speedo's most controversial move came with 2008's unveiling of the LZR (pronounced "lazer") Racer. The super smooth suit, which was optimised with the help of NASA wind tunnels, uses welded seams and multiple woven fabrics to reduce drag by up to six percent. In addition, the LZR, like the Fastskin, utilises a core stabiliser, which acts almost as a girdle, to reduce muscle movement. This was designed to help the swimmer maintain the proper angle in the water for longer periods of time. "Popular Science" magazine named the suit one of their "100 Best of What's New '08" list, calling it "The fastest swimsuit in the world". Subsequent research revealed another reason for the suit's success: tiny air bubbles tended to be trapped between the swimmer's body and the suit, lifting the swimmer slightly so that they benefited from lower friction against air as compared to water.
World record progression 200 metres freestyle
This is a history of the progression of the World Record for the Swimming event: the 200 Freestyle. It is a listing of the fastest-time-ever swum in the event, in both long course (50m) and short course (25m) swimming pool. These records are maintained/recognized by FINA, which oversees international competitive swimming and Aquatics.
Vampire squid
With their long velar filaments deployed, vampire squids have been observed drifting along in the deep, black ocean currents. If the filaments contact an entity, or if vibrations impinge upon them, the animals investigate with rapid acrobatic movements. They are capable of swimming at speeds equivalent to two body lengths per second, with an acceleration time of five seconds. However, their weak muscles limit stamina considerably.
List of United States Virgin Islands records in swimming
The United States Virgin Islands Records in Swimming are the fastest times ever swam by a swimmer representing U.S. Virgin Islands. These records are kept/maintained by the Virgin Islands Swimming Federation (VISF). Records are recognized for long course (50m) and short course (25m) swims, in the following events:
List of Lithuanian records in swimming
This is a listing of the national Swimming records for Lithuania. They are the fastest time ever-swum by a Lithuanian swimming in either a long course (50m) or short course (25m) pool. These records are maintained by Lithuania's national swimming federation: Lietuvos plaukimo federacija (LPF).
Aquatic mammal
Generally, all aquatic desmans, shrews, and voles make quick dives and catch small fish and invertebrates. The giant otter shrew, for example, makes quick dives that last for seconds and grabs small crabs (usually no bigger than across). The Lutrine opossum is the most carnivorous opossum, usually consuming small birds, rodents, and invertebrates. Water voles mainly eat grass and plants near the water and at times, they will also consume fruits, bulbs, twigs, buds, and roots. However, a population of water voles living in Wiltshire and Lincolnshire, England have started eating frogs' legs and discarding the bodies.
Bemidji, Minnesota
Every year, in the first week of August, teams compete in the Dragon boat races. The races are not the only thing that people can enjoy. There are also many food vendors, kid's activities, music, cultural performances, and more. An interesting fact, dragon boat racing is currently the fastest growing water sport in the nation.
Aquatic mammal
Aquatic mammals also display a variety of locomotion styles. Cetaceans excel in streamlined body shape and the up-and-down movements of their flukes make them fast swimmers; the tucuxi, for example, can reach speeds of . The considerably slower sirenians can also propel themselves with their fluke, but they can also walk on the bottom with their forelimbs. The earless seals (Phocidae) swim by moving their hind-flippers and lower body from side to side, while their fore-flippers are mainly used for steering. They are clumsy on land, and move on land by lunging, bouncing and wiggling while their fore-flippers keep them balanced; when confronted with predators, they retreat to the water as freshwater phocids have no aquatic predators.
Some aquatic mammals have retained four weight-bearing limbs (e.g. hippopotamuses, beavers, otters, muskrats) and can walk on land like fully terrestrial mammals. The long and thin legs of a moose limit exposure to and friction from water in contrast to hippopotamuses who keep most of their body submerged and have short and thick legs. The semiaquatic pygmy hippopotamus can walk quickly on a muddy underwater surface thanks to robust muscles and because all toes are weight-bearing. Some aquatic mammals with flippers (e.g. seals) are amphibious and regularly leave the water, sometimes for extended periods, and maneuver on land by undulating their bodies to move on land, similar to the up-and-down body motion used underwater by fully aquatic mammals (e.g. dolphins and manatees).
Seahorse
Seahorses swim very poorly, rapidly fluttering a dorsal fin and using pectoral fins (located behind their eyes) to steer. The slowest-moving fish in the world is "H. zosterae" (the dwarf seahorse), with a top speed of about per hour. Since they are poor swimmers, they are most likely to be found resting with their prehensile tails wound around a stationary object. They have long snouts, which they use to suck up food, and their eyes can move independently of each other like those of a chameleon.
Alan Ford (swimmer)
During his prep and university swimming careers, Ford held numerous national and world records. While at Yale, he trained under swimming coach Robert J. H. Kiphuth, an innovator who introduced dry-land exercises and interval training. Ford broke Johnny Weissmuller's 17-year-old world record in the 100-yard freestyle. In 1944, Ford became the first person to swim 100 yards freestyle in less than 50 seconds, swimming's equivalent of running a sub-four-minute mile in track. Ford became known as the "human fish," an unofficial title he took over from Weissmuller. This performance was unequaled for eight years. During his senior year at Yale University, he was the captain of Yale Bulldogs swimming and diving team.
Cat
A veterinarian and columnist for "Mercola Healthy Pets", Karen Shaw Becker, has compiled a list of the fastest and most athletic cat breeds. First is the Egyptian Mau, which can clock up to 30 miles per hour, faster than any other domestic cat breed in the world. In descending order, Becker lists the other swift domestic cats: the Abyssinian cat, the Somali cat, the Bengal cat, the Savannah cat, the Manx cat ("He can jump and accelerate through the house like there's no tomorrow. Watch for his sharp turns and quick stops – you'll think he's a mini sports car in the shape of a cat."), the Siamese cat, the Ocicat, and the Oriental Shorthair.
Circumnavigation
The nautical global and fastest circumnavigation record is currently held by a wind-powered vessel, the trimaran IDEC 3. The record was established by six sailors: Francis Joyon, Alex Pella, Clément Surtel, Gwénolé Gahinet, Sébastien Audigane and Bernard Stamm; who wrote themselves into history books on 26 January 2017, by circumnavigating the globe in 40 days, 23 hours, 30 minutes and 30 seconds. The absolute speed sailing record around the world followed the North Atlantic Ocean, Equator, South Atlantic Ocean, Southern Ocean, South Atlantic Ocean, Equator, North Atlantic Ocean route in an easterly direction.
List of World Deaf Championships records in swimming
The World Deaf Championships records in swimming are the fastest ever performances of deaf athletes swum at any edition of the meet, which are recognised and ratified by the Comité International des Sports des Sourds and FINA.
List of Palauan records in swimming
The Palauan records in swimming are the fastest ever performances of swimmers from Palau, which are recognised and ratified by the Palau Swimming Association.
List of Beast Wars II: Super Life-Form Transformers characters
Scuba —
A squid mode Transformer and thereby fastest in the water of the Maximals, Scuba grasps his enemies in his tentacles, drains their energy with his suckers, then delivers the final blow with his sharp fangs. A shy type, given the choice, he prefers to be alone, and he is quick to see the down side of things. Somehow, he is gifted with great penmanship, and is asked to write love letters, battle challenges and so on. "I said I would not do it, so forget it!" he usually responds. Often makes squid-related puns. His toy is a repaint of Claw Jaw.
Adam Peaty
Peaty is the 2016 Olympic Champion, a five-time World Champion, a twelve-time European Champion and a three-time Commonwealth Champion. He has broken world records 10 times and currently holds two world records in the 50 and 100 metre breaststroke events becoming the first man to swim under 26 seconds for the 50 metre breaststroke and the first to swim the 100 metre breaststroke under 58 seconds. He is the first swimmer ever to win both sprint breaststroke events at the same World championships, and the most successful British swimmer in a single World Championships. He is one of only three British swimmers, with David Wilkie and Rebecca Adlington, to have won gold medals at all four major international events (Olympic, World, European and Commonwealth Games), and the only swimmer to win all four major gold medals in the same single event at the same time, a feat he completed in winning the 100 metres breaststroke at the 2016 Summer Olympics. Peaty is a five-time European swimmer of the year which he has won consecutively from 2014 to 2018, and also a two-time World swimmer of the year in 2015 and 2018.
Terrestrial locomotion
The fastest terrestrial animal is the cheetah, which can attain maximal sprint speeds of approximately 104 km/h (64 mph). The fastest running lizard is the black iguana, which has been recorded moving at speed of up to 34.9 km/h (21.7 mph).
List of Deaf world records in swimming
The Deaf world records in swimming are the fastest ever performances of deaf athletes, which are recognised and ratified by the Comité International des Sports des Sourds and FINA.
Crinoid
Most modern crinoids, i.e., the feather stars, are free-swimming and lack a stem as adults. Examples of fossil crinoids that have been interpreted as free-swimming include "Marsupitsa", "Saccocoma" and "Uintacrinus". In 2005, a stalked crinoid was recorded pulling itself along the sea floor off the Grand Bahama Island. While it has been known that stalked crinoids move, before this recording the fastest motion of a crinoid was 0.6 metres/hour (2 ft/h) 0.0167 cm/s (centimeters per second). The 2005 recording showed a crinoid moving much faster, at a rate of 4-5 centimeters/second (144 to 180 meters per hour).
List of Universiade records in swimming
The fastest times swum in events at the Universiades (World University Games) are listed by International University Sports Federation (FISU) as a list of Universiade records in swimming. Swimming has been part of every Universiade, and the events are always held in a long course (50 m) pool. The last Universiade was held in Taipei, Taiwan in 2017.
List of Hawaiian records in swimming
The Hawaiian records in swimming are the fastest ever performances of swimmers from Hawaii, which are maintained by Hawaiian Swimming. Hawaii is no official Fina member, but Hawaiian Swimming is the Local Swim Committee of USA Swimming that governs the sport of swimming in the geographical area of the state of Hawaii.
Aquatic locomotion
Examples are: Some breeds of dog swim recreationally. Umbra, a world record-holding dog, can swim 4 miles (6.4 km) in 73 minutes, placing her in the top 25% in human long-distance swimming competitions. Although most cats hate water, adult cats are good swimmers. The fishing cat is one wild species of cat that has evolved special adaptations for an aquatic or semi-aquatic lifestyle – webbed digits. Tigers and some individual jaguars are the only big cats known to go into water readily, though other big cats, including lions, have been observed swimming. A few domestic cat breeds also like swimming, such as the Turkish Van.
Human-powered transport
Hydrofoils have less water resistance at the highest speeds attainable by humans and are thus usually faster than displacement boats on short courses. The world speed record on water was set 27 October 1991 by MIT professor Mark Drela who pedalled a human-powered hydrofoil, "Decavitator", to 18.5 knots (21.3 mph)(9.53 meters/second) over a 100-meter course in Boston, Massachusetts, US.
List of South American records in swimming
The South American records in swimming are the fastest times ever swum by a swimmer representing a member federation of the South American Swimming Confederation (CONSANAT), South America's governing body of swimming.
Flora and fauna of the Discworld
A big cat with a unique black and white check coat, the ambiguous puzuma is the Disc's fastest animal. Due to the Disc's standing magical field, which slows down light to approximately the speed of sound, the puzuma can actually achieve near-light-speed. Therefore, seeing a puzuma in motion means it isn't there. Puzumas commonly die from complications caused by Sangrit Heisenberg's Uncertainty Principle; they lose concentration because they cannot simultaneously know who they are and where they are, frequently causing them to crash into an obstacle. Many males also die from ankle failure caused by excessively running after females who aren't present.
List of Burkinabe records in swimming
The Burkinabé records in swimming are the fastest ever performances of swimmers from Burkina Faso, which are recognised and ratified by the Fédération Burkinabé de Natation et de Sauvetage.
List of Sammarinese records in swimming
The Sammarinese records in swimming are the fastest ever performances of swimmers from San Marino, which are recognised and ratified by the San Marino Swimming Federation (FSN).
List of Guatemalan records in swimming
The Guatemala records in swimming are the fastest ever performances of swimmers from Guatemala, which are recognised and ratified by the Federacion Nacional de Natacion, Clavado, Polo Acuatico y Nado Sincronizado.
Matt Biondi
Biondi set the first of his twelve individual swimming world records in 1985. He was the first man to swim the 100-meter freestyle faster than 49 seconds, and by 1988 he owned the ten fastest times swum in that event. He won a total 24 U.S. Championships in the 50, 100, and 200-meter freestyle events, as well as the 100 butterfly. In two World Championships (1986 and 1991), Biondi won 11 medals including six gold. During his career, he was a finalist for the James E. Sullivan Award, the UPI Sportsman of the Year, the U.S. Olympic Committee Sportsman of the Year, and selected twice as the "Swimming World magazine" Male Swimmer of the World, in 1986 and 1988.
Thermoregulation
In April 2014, the South Californian mite "Paratarsotomus macropalpis" has been recorded as the world's fastest land animal relative to body length, at a speed of 322 body lengths per second. Besides the unusually great speed of the mites, the researchers were surprised to find the mites running at such speeds on concrete at temperatures up to , which is significant because this temperature is well above the lethal limit for the majority of animal species. In addition, the mites are able to stop and change direction very quickly.
World record progression 200 metres butterfly
This is a history of the progression of the World Record for the Swimming event: the 200 Butterfly. It is a listing of the fastest-time-ever swum in the event, in both long course (50m) and short course (25m) swimming pool. These records are maintained/recognized by FINA, which oversees international competitive Aquatics.
List of junior world records in swimming
The Junior World Records in Swimming are the fastest times ever swum by a "junior" swimmer, with junior defined as the following ages (age as of December 31 of the year of the swim):
These records are kept/maintained by the FINA, and were initially established in March 2014 and based on the meet records from the Junior Worlds meet.
Animal locomotion
Some semi-aquatic birds use terrestrial locomotion, surface swimming, underwater swimming and flying (e.g., ducks, swans). Diving birds also use diving locomotion (e.g., dippers, aulks). Some birds (e.g., ratites) have lost the primary locomotion of flight. The largest of these, ostriches, when being pursued by a predator, have been known to reach speeds over , and can maintain a steady speed of , which makes the ostrich the world's fastest two-legged animal: Ostriches can also locomote by swimming. Penguins either waddle on their feet or slide on their bellies across the snow, a movement called "tobogganing", which conserves energy while moving quickly. They also jump with both feet together if they want to move more quickly or cross steep or rocky terrain. To get onto land, penguins sometimes propel themselves upwards at a great speed to leap out the water.
Shortfin mako shark
The shortfin mako is the fastest species of shark. Its speed has been recorded at , with bursts of up to allowing it to jump to heights of approximately . These characteristics have made the shortfin mako a highly sought-after game fish worldwide. Some cases of shortfin mako jumping into a boat after having been hooked have been reported.
List of Ecuadorian records in swimming
The Ecuadorian records in swimming are the fastest ever performances of swimmers from Ecuador, which are recognised and ratified by the Federation Ecuatoriana de Natation (FEN).
Cheetah
The cheetah is the fastest land animal. It was called the "felid version of the greyhound", as both have similar morphology and the ability to reach tremendous speeds in a shorter time than other mammals.
Fastest animals
This is a list of the fastest animals in the world, grouped by types of animal.
Saluki
While the Greyhound is credited as being the fastest dog breed up to distances of around , both the Saluki and Whippet breeds are thought to be faster over longer distances. In 1996, The Guinness Book of Records listed a Saluki as being the fastest dog, capable of reaching a speed of . Due to its heavily padded feet being able to absorb the impact on its body, the Saluki has remarkable stamina when running.
List of Micronesian records in swimming
The Micronesian records in swimming are the fastest ever performances of swimmers from the Federated States of Micronesia, which are recognised and ratified by the Federated States of Micronesia Swimming Association.
Kangaroo
Kangaroos are the only large animals to use hopping as a means of locomotion. The comfortable hopping speed for a red kangaroo is about , but speeds of up to can be attained over short distances, while it can sustain a speed of for nearly . This fast and energy-efficient method of travel has evolved because of the need to regularly cover large distances in search of food and water, rather than the need to escape predators. At slow speeds, it employs pentapedal locomotion, using its tail to form a tripod with its two forelimbs while bringing its hind feet forward. Kangaroos are adept swimmers, and often flee into waterways if threatened by a predator. If pursued into the water, a kangaroo may use its forepaws to hold the predator underwater so as to drown it.
Convergent evolution
Swimming animals including fish such as herrings, marine mammals such as dolphins, and ichthyosaurs (of the Mesozoic) all converged on the same streamlined shape. The fusiform bodyshape (a tube tapered at both ends) adopted by many aquatic animals is an adaptation to enable them to travel at high speed in a high drag environment. Similar body shapes are found in the earless seals and the eared seals: they still have four legs, but these are strongly modified for swimming.
List of Pacific Games records in swimming
The fastest times in the swimming events at the Pacific Games (formerly known as the South Pacific Games) are designated as the Pacific Games records in swimming. The events are held in a long course (50 m) pool. The last Games were held in Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea in 2015.
Supertask
Zeno himself also discusses the notion of what he calls "Achilles and the tortoise". Suppose that Achilles is the fastest runner, and moves at a speed of 1 m/s. Achilles chases a tortoise, an animal renowned for being slow, that moves at 0.1 m/s. However, the tortoise starts 0.9 metres ahead. Common sense seems to decree that Achilles will catch up with the tortoise after exactly 1 second, but Zeno argues that this is not the case. He instead suggests that Achilles must inevitably come up to the point where the tortoise has started from, but by the time he has accomplished this, the tortoise will already have moved on to another point. This continues, and every time Achilles reaches the mark where the tortoise was, the tortoise will have reached a new point that Achilles will have to catch up with; while it begins with 0.9 metres, it becomes an additional 0.09 metres, then 0.009 metres, and so on, infinitely. While these distances will grow very small, they will remain finite, while Achilles' chasing of the tortoise will become an unending supertask. Much commentary has been made on this particular paradox; many assert that it finds a loophole in common sense.
List of Cypriot records in swimming
The Cypriot records in swimming are the fastest ever performances of swimmers from Cyprus, which are recognised and ratified by the Cyprus Swimming Federation.
English Channel
The fastest verified swim of the Channel was by the Australian Trent Grimsey on 8 September 2012, in 6 hours 55 minutes, beating the previous record set in 2007 by Bulgarian swimmer Petar Stoychev.
Dwarf seahorse
The dwarf seahorse ("Hippocampus zosterae") is a species of seahorse found in the subtidal aquatic beds of the Bahamas and parts of the United States. It is threatened by habitat loss. According to "Guinness World Records", it is the slowest-moving fish, with a top speed of about per hour.
Farida Osman
Farida Hisham Osman (born January 18, 1995) is an Egyptian competitive swimmer who specializes in butterfly and freestyle events. An All-Africa Games gold medalist and Egyptian national champion and record-holder. Osman is the fastest female swimmer in Egypt and Africa, she is currently coached by Teri McKeever. Osman holds the senior national records for all the butterfly, freestyle and backstroke events, as well as African records in the 50m and 100m butterfly.
List of birds by flight speed
This is a list of the fastest flying birds in the world. A bird's velocity is necessarily variable; a hunting bird will reach much greater speeds while diving to catch prey than when gliding. The bird with the greatest airspeed velocity is the Peregrine falcon, able to exceed 321.8 km/h (200 mph) in its hunting dives. The greatest self-powered horizontal speed is achieved by Homing Racing Pigeons. They can fly 1100 km (700 miles) in a single day, and they have been recorded flying at 177 km/h (110 miles per hour), making them the birds with the fastest speed ever recorded on a self-powered flight, and the fastest endurance flight.
Sarah (cheetah)
Sarah, also known as Sahara, ( 2001 – 22 January 2016) was a female South African cheetah ("Acinonyx jubatus jubatus") that lived in the Cincinnati Zoo in Cincinnati, Ohio. Sarah was known as the world's fastest land mammal according to National Geographic magazine. She ran 100 meters in 5.95 seconds (more precisely, 5.954 seconds and up to 61 miles an hour (98 km/h)) in 2012 when she was 11 years old. She died on 22 January 2016 at the age of 15.
Grant Stoelwinder
Grant is also coach for the current World's Fastest 50m and 100m swimmer, Eamon Sullivan. With Grant's guidance and his specific high intensity program for sprints, Eamon has increased his success in the pool over the last year. At the 2008 Australian Swimming Championships held at the Australian Olympic Park Aquatic Centre, Eamon broke the long-standing record of Alexander Popov for this swim twice, with a final time of 21.28 seconds. According to Grant, this was a 'perfect swim'. Eamon attributes his faster swim to a 'few words' from Grant.
Dragonet
Four types of swimming are observed in the dragonet. The first is burst swimming, the most common of the four, and utilized during foraging. The dragonet uses its pelvic fins to propel its body off of a substrate, and then its pectoral fins to guide itself forward. The second is continuous swimming, often utilized by males when approaching a potential mate or retreating during an aggressive encounter with another male. The dragonet uses its pectoral fins to propel its body forward, and its pelvic fins to lift and guide itself. The third type of swimming is rapid swimming, which is observed when the dragonet is attacking or fleeing. The fish primarily uses its caudal fins to achieve a quick speed. Finally, the fourth type is vertical swimming, utilized by the dragonet during spawning when it ascends. The pectoral fins are used to propel the fish’s body up the water column.