[Grammar] Your dog ran the fastest of any dog in the race. (superlative)

[kadioguy]

Your dog ran the fastest of any dog in the race.

We all threw our rocks at the same time. My rock flew the highest (of all the rocks).

https://www.ef.com.tw/english-guide/english-grammar/comparative-and-superlative/
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Can I say the following? (omit 'the')

Your dog ran fastest of any dog in the race.

We all threw our rocks at the same time. My rock flew highest (of all the rocks).

 

[kadioguy]

Can I say the following? (omit 'the')

Your dog ran fastest of any dog in the race.

We all threw our rocks at the same time. My rock flew highest (of all the rocks).

Now I think they are OK, but I am not sure. Can anyone help me?

 

[jutfrank]

Yes, you should omit the since fastest and highest relate to ran and flew. Therefore, they are working as adverbs, not as adjectives. For this reason, I think it's not strictly correct to use the. However, it does sound reasonably natural with the, too. This could possibly be due to inferring an implied noun (the fastest time/the highest distance) thus making the necessary.

I would advise phrasing the thoughts in another way.

Your dog ran faster than all the other dogs in the race.
Your dog was the fastest of all the dogs in the race.

My rock flew higher than all the other rocks.