NAIROBI,  (Reuters) – Olympic and world sprint champion  Usain Bolt  yesterday adopted a cheetah cub in Kenya’s Nairobi  National Park.  

The head of the Kenya Wildlife Service, Julius Kipng’etich,  described the event as “the first time in history where the  fastest animal and the fastest man will meet.”   

Bolt, who had said previously he was scared of cheetahs as  they could out-run him, said he changed his mind as he  bottle-fed the two-month-old cub over his shoulder.   

Cheetahs are some of the world’s fastest and most skilled  predators, able to reach speeds of up to 112 km (70 miles) per  hour. The Jamaican sprinter’s new cub has been named Lightning  Bolt.  

Bolt was accompanied by Welsh hurdler Colin Jackson who  adopted an eland, and Kenyan Prime Minister Raila Odinga who has  previously adopted two lions.  

Odinga used the occasion to remind Kenyans that it was their  “civic duty” to preserve the country’s diverse wildlife, not  just for tourism, but for future generations.  

He described the event as a “refreshing” opportunity to talk  about sport and wildlife conservation rather than politics, in a  country that has faced huge political challenges in recent  years.  

Bolt has been touring Kenya since last Friday as a sports  ambassador for The Zeitz Foundation of Germany.