9. Cheetahs easily beat greyhounds in a race… when they can be bothered
If you own a cat, or have ever encountered one, you’ll know how impossible it is to get them to comply with one’s wishes. So what could have been a better idea than entering Cheetahs into competitive races? Noticing the popularity of greyhound racing in the UK in the early 20th century (there were 77 stadia at its peak, with 33 tracks in London alone), two enterprising men, Raymond Hook and Kenneth Gandar-Dower, hatched a scheme to capitalize on it. Hook owned an estate in Kenya, making his money supplying animals to zoos, but his great passion was the Cheetah.
In 1934, Hook was hired as a guide by the wealthy Gandar-Dower, and the two hatched a plan to import Cheetahs to England as racing animals. After capturing twelve, they travelled to England in December 1936, and instantly started training them for competing in greyhound races. Though Hook gave up after the cats refused to chase anything during a private demonstration, Gandar-Dower would not give up, and succeeded in selling out the Romford Stadium for a cat vs dog competition for the ages. Thus, on the cold night of 11th December 1937, thousands stood excitedly rubbing their hands.
Though the cats surprised even Gandar-Dower by bothering to run, the race itself was a non-event. The first Cheetah, Helen, cleared 50 yards before the greyhounds had even left their gates, and set a new record. The next event saw two cats that were best friends easily outstrip the dogs before losing interest altogether. Sadly, the Cheetah’s mercurial character, which meant that it would only run when it felt like it, made it unsuitable for competitive racing, and a ban on gambling on animals in the UK saw the sport dwindle to obscurity after one last race in 1939.