| Nathan's Famous International Hot Dog Eating Contest | |
| Status: | Active |
| Genre: | Hot dog competitive eating competition |
| Date: | July 4 |
| Frequency: | Annually |
| Venue: | Nathan's Famous Corporation |
| Location: | Brooklyn, New York City |
| Country: | United States |
| Founders: | --> |
| Or Sponsors: | --> |
The Nathan's Famous International Hot Dog Eating Contest is an annual American hot dog competitive eating competition. It is held each year on July 4 at Nathan's Famous' original, and best-known, restaurant at the corner of Surf and Stillwell Avenues in Coney Island, a neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York City.
The contest has gained public attention since the mid-2000s due to the stardom of Takeru "The Tsunami" Kobayashi and Joey Chestnut. The defending men's champion is Patrick Bertoletti, who ate 58 hot dogs in the 2024 contest. The defending women's champion is Miki Sudo, who ate 51 hot dogs in 2024.[1]
Major League Eating (MLE), sanctioned by the International Federation of Competitive Eating (IFOCE), has sanctioned the event since 1997. Today, only entrants currently under contract by MLE can compete in the contest.
The field of about 20 contestants typically includes the following:
The competitors stand on a raised platform behind a long table with drinks and Nathan's Famous hot dogs in buns. Most contestants have water on hand, but other kinds of drinks can and have been used. Condiments are allowed, but usually are not used. The hot dogs are allowed to cool slightly after grilling to prevent possible mouth burns. The contestant who consumes (and keeps down) the most hot dogs and buns (HDB) in ten minutes is declared the winner. The length of the contest has changed over the years, previously 12 minutes, and in some years, only three and a half minutes; since 2008, 10 minutes.
Spectators watch and cheer on the eaters from close proximity. A designated scorekeeper is paired with each contestant, flipping a number board counting each hot dog consumed. Partially eaten hot dogs count and the granularity of measurement is eighths of a length. Hot dogs still in the mouth at the end of regulation count if they are subsequently swallowed. Yellow penalty cards can be issued for "messy eating",[2] and red penalty cards can be issued for "reversal of fortune", which results in disqualification.[2] If there is a tie, the contestants go to a 5-hot-dog eat-off to see who can eat that many the quickest. Further ties will result in a sudden-death eat-off of eating one more hot dog in the fastest time.
After the winner is declared, a plate showing the number of hot dogs eaten by the winner is brought out for photo opportunities.
The winner of the men's competition is of the coveted international "bejeweled" mustard-yellow belt. The belt is of "unknown age and value" according to IFOCE co-founder George Shea and rests in the country of its owner. In 2011, Sonya Thomas won the inaugural women's competition and its "bejeweled" pink belt.
Various other prizes have been awarded over the years. For example, in 2004 Orbitz donated a travel package to the winner. Starting in 2007, cash prizes have been awarded to the top finishers.
The Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest has been held at the original location on Coney Island most years since about 1972, usually in conjunction with Independence Day.[3] As Coney Island is often linked with recreational activities of the summer season, several early contests were held on other holidays associated with summer besides Independence Day; for example, multiple contests in the 1970s were scheduled on Memorial Day[4] or Labor Day.[5]
In the late 1990s and early 2000s, the competition was dominated by Japanese contestants, particularly Kobayashi, who won six consecutive contests from 2001 to 2006. In 2001, Kobayashi transformed the competition and the world of competitive eating by downing 50 hot dogs—smashing the previous record of 25.5. The Japanese eater introduced advanced eating and training techniques that shattered previous competitive eating world records. The rise in popularity of the event coincided with the surge in popularity of the worldwide competitive eating circuit.
In recent years, a considerable amount of pomp and circumstance have surrounded the days leading up to the event, which has become an annual spectacle of competitive entertainment. The event is presented on an extravagant stage complete with colorful live announcers and an overall party atmosphere. The day before the contest is a public weigh-in with the mayor of New York City. Some competitors don flamboyant costumes and/or makeup, while others may promote themselves with eating-related nicknames. On the morning of the event, they have a heralded arrival to Coney Island on the "bus of champions" and are called to the stage individually during introductions. In 2013, six-time defending champion Joey Chestnut was escorted to the stage in a sedan chair.
The competition draws many spectators and worldwide press coverage. In 2004 a three-story-high "Hot Dog Eating Wall of Fame" was erected at the site of the annual contest. The wall lists past winners, and has a digital clock which counts down the minutes until the next contest. In 2007, an estimated 50,000 came out to witness the event. Despite substantial damage suffered at Nathan's due to Hurricane Sandy in October 2012, the location was repaired, reopened, and the 2013 event was held as scheduled.[6]
ESPN has long enjoyed solid ratings from its broadcast of the Hot Dog Eating Contest on Independence Day, and on July 1, 2014, the network announced it had extended its agreement with Major League Eating and would broadcast the contest through 2024.[7] The most recent broadcast rights deal, announced in November 2022, will keep the contest airing on ESPN through 2029.[8]
In 2003 former National Football League player William "The Refrigerator" Perry competed as a celebrity contestant. Though he had won a qualifier by eating twelve hot dogs, he ate only four at the contest, stopping after just five minutes.[9] The celebrity contestant experiment has not been held since.
At the 2007 contest, the results were delayed to review whether defending champion Kobayashi had vomited (also known as a "Roman method incident" or "reversal of fortune") in the final seconds of regulation. Such an incident results in the disqualification of the competitor under the rules of the IFOCE. The judges ruled in Kobayashi's favor. A similar incident occurred involving Kobayashi in 2002[10] in a victory over Eric "Badlands" Booker.
On July 4, 2011, Sonya Thomas became the champion of the first Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest for Women.[11] Previously, women and men had competed against each other, except for one Memorial Day competition held in 1975.[12] Eating 40 hot dogs in 10 minutes, Thomas earned the inaugural Pepto-Bismol-sponsored pink belt and won $10,000.[13]
In 2020, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the contest was held without spectators at an indoor location in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, and only five eaters competed in each category instead of the usual 15.[14] [15] In 2021, the event was held at Maimonides Park, with a reduced crowd of 7,000.
Kobayashi has not competed in the contest since 2009 due to his refusal to sign an exclusive contract with Major League Eating, which is the current sanctioning body of the contest. In 2010, he was arrested by police after attempting to jump on the stage after the contest was over and disrupt the proceedings. Some witnesses reported that Kobayashi was attempting to congratulate the winner, Chestnut.[16] [17] [18] On August 5, 2010, all charges against Kobayashi were dismissed by a judge in Brooklyn. Despite his six consecutive victories in their annual event, Nathan's removed Kobayashi's image from their "Wall of Fame" in 2011. Kobayashi again refused to compete in 2011, but instead conducted his own hot dog eating exhibition, consuming 69 HDB, seven more than Chestnut accomplished in the Nathan's contest.[19] The sports website Deadspin deemed Kobayashi's solo appearance "an improbably perfect 'up yours' to the Nathan's hot dog eating contest."[20]
Chestnut was banned from the 2024 contest due to signing a deal with Impossible Food, which sells plant based products including hot dogs. A Major League Eating executive claimed that Nathan's asked for an exemption to the deal be made regarding Impossible Food's hot dogs which was denied with Major League Eating banning Chestnut as a result.[21] [22] On June 25, Chestnut instead agreed to attend Fort Bliss' Pop Goes the Fort celebration and compete in a 4 versus 1 eating competition with a five minute time limit,[23] [24] with Chestnut prevailing 57 to 49 while raising $106,000 for Operation Homefront.[25]
In 2010, Nathan's promoter Mortimer "Morty" Matz admitted to having fabricated the legend of the 1916 start date with a man named Max Rosey in the early 1970s as part of a publicity stunt.[26]
According to that legend, on July 4, 1916, four immigrants held a hot dog eating contest at Nathan's Famous stand on Coney Island to settle an argument about who was the most patriotic. A man by the name of Jim Mullen is said to have won the first contest,[27] although accounts vary. One account describes Jimmy Durante, who was not an immigrant, as competing in that all-immigrant inaugural contest, which was judged by Eddie Cantor and Sophie Tucker.[28] Another co-founder describes the event as beginning "in 1917, and pitted Mae West's father, Jack, against entertainer Eddie Cantor."[29] Nathan made the spurious claim that the contest has been held each year since then except 1941, "as a protest to the war in Europe",[30] [31] and 1971, as a protest to political unrest in the U.S.
The legend grew over the years, to the point where The New York Times and other publications were known to have repeatedly listed 1916 as the inaugural year, although no evidence of the contest exists.
| Year | Winner (and date, if prior to permanently moving all contests to Independence Day in 1997) | Hot dogs and buns (HDB) | Contest duration | Note(s)< | -- | - | 2022 | MEN'S | ?? | 10 min | rowspan=2 | - | WOMEN'S | ?? --> |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | MEN'S Patrick Bertoletti | 58 | 10 min | Joey Chestnut is absent from the men’s event for the first time since 2004, due to a purported sponsorship issue between Chestnut and Major League Eating. Chestnut eats 57 HDB in 5 minutes in a non-sponsored event. Miki Sudo sets a new women’s record, with 51 HDB eaten. | ||||||||||
| WOMEN'S Miki Sudo | 51 | |||||||||||||
| 2023[32] | MEN'S Joey Chestnut | 62 | 10 min | |||||||||||
| WOMEN'S Miki Sudo | ||||||||||||||
| 2022 | MEN'S Joey Chestnut | 63 | 10 min | Miki Sudo returns from her pregnancy to reclaim her title. After being shoved from the table, Joey Chestnut puts a protester who ran onto the stage during the event in a chokehold. Geoffrey Esper (47 HDB) finished second. James Webb (41 HDB) finished third. | ||||||||||
| WOMEN'S Miki Sudo | 40 | |||||||||||||
| 2021 | MEN'S Joey Chestnut | 76 | 10 min | The event is held at Maimonides Park due to capacity restrictions and other health and safety requirements. Joey Chestnut breaks the world record with 76 HDB. Defending champion Miki Sudo was out due to her pregnancy. | ||||||||||
| WOMEN'S Michelle Lesco | ||||||||||||||
| 2020 | MEN'S Joey Chestnut | 75 | 10 min | First time event is being held indoors without fans caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Joey Chestnut breaks the world record with 75 HDB. Darron Breeden (42 HDB) finished second. Nick Wehry (39.5 HDB) finished third. Miki Sudo breaks the women's world record with 48.5 HDB. | ||||||||||
| WOMEN'S Miki Sudo | ||||||||||||||
| 2019 | MEN'S Joey Chestnut | 71 | 10 min | Joey Chestnut won his 12th title. Darron Breeden (50 HDB) finished second. Geoffrey Esper (47 HDB) finished third. Sudo (31 HDB) edged out Lesco (26 HDB) to win her sixth Nathan's belt. | ||||||||||
| WOMEN'S Miki Sudo | 31 | |||||||||||||
| 2018 | MEN'S Joey Chestnut | 74 | 10 min | After a judging error had left the results in question, the final results showed that Joey Chestnut broke the world record with 74 HDB. Carmen Cincotti (64 HDB) finished second. Darron Breeden (43 HDB) finished third. Sudo won her fifth women's belt. Michelle Lesco (28 HDB) finished second. Sonya Thomas and Juliet Lee (25 HDB) tied for third. This is the last competition that Thomas competed in. | ||||||||||
| WOMEN'S Miki Sudo | 37 | |||||||||||||
| 2017 | MEN'S Joey Chestnut | 72 | 10 min | Joey Chestnut breaks the contest record with 72 HDB. Carmen Cincotti (60 HDB) finished second. Matt Stonie (48 HDB) finished third. Sudo won her fourth women's title, beating Michelle Lesco (32 HDB) and Thomas (30 HDB). | ||||||||||
| WOMEN'S Miki Sudo | 41 | |||||||||||||
| 2016 | MEN'S Joey Chestnut | 70 | 10 min | Joey Chestnut won the mustard-colored belt for the ninth time, eating 70 hot dogs and buns. Defending champion Matt Stonie consumed 53 HDB. Sudo won her third consecutive women's title, edging out Thomas (35 HDB). At the Giant National Capital BBQ Battle in Washington, D.C., on June 25, Chestnut set the record of 73.5 in an official qualifier.[33] | ||||||||||
| WOMEN'S Miki Sudo | ||||||||||||||
| 2015 | MEN'S Matt Stonie | 62 | 10 min | Matt Stonie ended the 8 year winning streak of Joey Chestnut, eating 62 HDB to Joey's 60. Tim Janus (35 HDB) finished third. Sudo won her second women's belt, beating Thomas (31 HDB). | ||||||||||
| WOMEN'S Miki Sudo | 38 | |||||||||||||
| 2014 | MEN'S Joey Chestnut | 61 | 10 min | Joey Chestnut faced fierce competition from Matt Stonie, who finished second with 56 HDB. Tim Janus (44 HDB) finished in 3rd. This became Joey's 8th consecutive win. Miki Sudo (34 HDB) dethroned Thomas (HDB), the first time in the history of the competition that Thomas had been defeated since the inception of the women's division. Sudo also ended a long tradition by becoming the first champion in a quarter-century to decline to use a nickname during Nathan's competitions. | ||||||||||
| WOMEN'S Miki Sudo | 34 | |||||||||||||
| 2013 | MEN'S Joey Chestnut | 69 | 10 min | Joey Chestnut beat his own record with 69 HDB. Matt Stonie (51HDB) finished second. Tim Janus (50 HDB) finished in 3rd. After facing fierce competition from Juliet Lee (36 HDB), Thomas (HDB) won her third title. | ||||||||||
| WOMEN'S Sonya Thomas | ||||||||||||||
| 2012 | MEN'S Joey Chestnut | 68 | 10 min | Chestnut tied his previous record, previously set in 2009. He also became the second person to win six consecutive titles. Tim Janus (52.25) and Patrick Bertoletti (51) finish second and third. Matt Stonie, who would go on to claim victory in 2015 finished fourth with 46 HDB. Bob Shoudt was 5th (45 HDB) broke Thomas' record for oldest person to eat their age in HDB (45 yr) Thomas (45 HDB) broke the female record and set a new record for the oldest person to eat their age in HDB (44 yr), beating Juliet Lee (33 HDB). | ||||||||||
| WOMEN'S Sonya Thomas | 45 | |||||||||||||
| 2011 | MEN'S Joey Chestnut | 62 | 10 min | Separate competitions are held for women and men for the first time since the 1975 one-off event. Chestnut dominates on his way to his fifth straight title. Sonya Thomas (40 HDB) won the inaugural women's event. Patrick Bertoletti (53) and Tim "Eater X" Janus (45) finish 2nd and 3rd for the second year in a row. | ||||||||||
| WOMEN'S Sonya Thomas | 40 | |||||||||||||
| 2010 | Joey Chestnut | 54 | 10 min | Chestnut (54), Tim "Eater X" Janus (45), and Patrick Bertoletti (37) round out the top three. | ||||||||||
| 2009 | Joey Chestnut | 68 | 10 min | Chestnut (68 HDB) beat his previous record in 10 minutes, setting new event, U.S., and world records. Kobayashi (HDB) set a Japanese record. Patrick Bertoletti (55 HDB) finished third. Sonya Thomas (41 HDB) broke the female record. | ||||||||||
| 2008 | Joey Chestnut | 59 Eat-off: 5 | 10 min Eat-off: untimed, but completed in 50 sec. | Event, Japanese, U.S., and world records set (59 HDB). First event using the new ten-minute time limit, and first tie and eat-off since 1980. Chestnut & Kobayashi tied for first with 59 in regulation. In overtime Chestnut is the first to finish a plate of 5 HDB in 50 seconds. Kobayashi, losing by 7 seconds, finishes second. Tim Janus finished third with 42. | ||||||||||
| 2007 | Joey Chestnut | 66 | 12 min | Having broken the world and U.S. records with HDB at a qualifier contest on June 2, 2007, Chestnut (66 HDB) finishes first, setting new event, U.S. and world records. Defeating Kobayashi (63 HDB) for the first time. Fifth place Sonya Thomas (39 HDB) sets female record. | ||||||||||
| 2006 |  Takeru Kobayashi | 12 min | Winner Kobayashi sets event, Japanese and world records. Second place Joey Chestnut (52 HDB), sets U.S. record. Sonya Thomas (37) finishes third. | |||||||||||
| 2005 | Takeru Kobayashi | 49 | 12 min | 2nd: Sonya Thomas (37) sets U.S. record, Women's record. Future winner Joey Chestnut finishes third with 32. | ||||||||||
| 2004 | Takeru Kobayashi | 12 min | Event, United States and world records set. 2nd: Nobuyuki Shirota (38), Sonya Thomas (32 HDB) sets the female and U.S. records. | |||||||||||
| 2003 | Takeru Kobayashi | 12 min | Sonya Thomas (25 HDB) sets the female record. 2nd: Ed Jarvis (American record), 3rd: Eric Booker (29). Twenty competitors and 3,000 spectators in attendance. William "The Refrigerator" Perry competes, but eats only four HDB and drops out after five minutes.[34] | |||||||||||
| 2002 | Takeru Kobayashi | 12 min | Event, Japanese and world records set. | |||||||||||
| 2001 | Takeru Kobayashi | 50 | 12 min | 20 competitors total. All-time world records set.[35] 2nd: Kazutoyo Arai (31), 3rd: Eric "Badlands" Booker (22). | ||||||||||
| 2000 | Kazutoyo Arai | 12 min | The contest was won by a 100-pound 32-year-old mattress salesman from Saitama, Japan. The prizes were "the coveted mustard-yellow International Belt, a huge red trophy, and 20 pounds of Nathan's hot dogs." Misao Fujita (also known as "Wild Beast"[36]) of Japan was the runner-up and consumed 24 hot dogs. A woman, Takako Akasaka of Japan, was the third-place finisher and consumed 22 hot dogs. 41 year old locomotive machinist Steve Addicks of Finksburg, Maryland, was the fourth-place finisher and consumed 21 hot dogs. 391-pound, 35 year old reigning champion Steve Keiner of Atlantic City, New Jersey "finished in the middle of the pack" and consumed 15 hot dogs. "Dozens" of contestants participated. A press account from the time describes this as an annual contest held regularly since 1916.[37] Another describes this as the 85th annual contest. | |||||||||||
| 1999 | Steve Keiner | 12 min | The contest was won by a 317-pound, 50-year-old man from Egg Harbor Township, New Jersey. The prize was the bejeweled mustard-colored belt[38] and 60 pounds of hot dogs.[39] Footage recorded by NY1 appeared to show that he actually consumed half of a hot dog before the starting gun was fired and should have been disqualified by the judges. Charles Hardy and Bartoszek Tadeusz, both of Brooklyn, were the runners-up and consumed 20 hot dogs each. Hardy charged that he could have consumed more had he been given another plate of hot dogs before time expired.[40] 134-pound, reigning champion Hirofumi Nakajima of Japan consumed 19 hot dogs. Former champion Mike DeVito also participated. | |||||||||||
| 1998 | Hirofumi Nakajima | 19 | 12 min | The contest was won by the reigning champion, a 135-pound, 23 year old furniture delivery worker from Kōfu, Japan. The prizes were "the coveted mustard-yellow International Belt, a huge red trophy, and 20 pounds of Nathan's hot dogs."[41] A 387-pound, 29 year old corrections officer from Brooklyn, Charles "Hungry" Hardy, was the runner-up and consumed hot dogs.[42] 381-pound, 35 year old mechanical engineer and former champion Ed Krachie came out of retirement in a vain attempt to break Japan's win streak but was the third-place finisher and consumed 14 hot dogs. A 53 year old haggis-eating champion from the United Kingdom, Barry Noble, also participated. In all, 16 contestants participated.[43] | ||||||||||
| 1997 | Hirofumi Nakajima | 12 min | Although Nathan's attempted to expand its pool of American contestants by sponsoring "a circuit of qualifying contests leading up to the grand finale on the Fourth",[44] Japanese contestants continued to increase their influence. The contest was won by the reigning champion, a 135-pound, 22 year old furniture delivery worker from Kōfu, Japan. The prizes were "a large emerald and brass trophy, a Mustard-Yellow International Belt, and a 20-pack take-out order for Nathan's hot dogs." 100-pound, 30 year old future champion Kazutoyo Arai of Saitama, Japan was the runner-up and consumed 24 hot dogs. 330-pound, 34 year old former champion Ed Krachie was the third-place finisher and consumed 20 hot dogs. 23 contestants participated. A press account from the time describes this as an annual contest held regularly since 1916.[45] | |||||||||||
| 1996 | ONE-ON-ONE CHALLENGE WITH JAPAN Hirofumi Nakajima December 4 | 12 min | The contest was won by the reigning champion, a 300-pound man from Queens.[46] The prizes apparently included the bejeweled mustard-yellow belt and a trophy, if not more.[47] Former champion Mike DeVito was the runner-up and consumed 20 hot dogs. 200-pound, 42 year old Guardian Angels founder Curtis Sliwa was also a contestant.[48] 20 contestants participated. A press account from the time describes this as an annual contest held regularly since 1916, except for 1939, 1940, and 1941—this time held under the moniker "Battle of the Burroughs". A later 1996 contest was also sponsored by Nathan's (and TV Tokyo[49]), but was held at Central Park instead of at its traditional location. It was won by a 144-pound, 22-year-old man from Japan; he had never eaten a hot dog until the day before the competition. The prizes were the bejeweled mustard-yellow belt and $2,000. 320-pound, 33 year old mechanical engineer Ed Krachie of New York was the runner-up. Only those 2 contestants participated.[50] | |||||||||||
| Ed Krachie Independence Day | 22 | 12 min | ||||||||||||
| 1995 | Ed Krachie Independence Day | 12 min | The contest was won by a 350-pound NYNEX engineer from Queens. 205-pound, 33 year old Salomon Brothers vice president and reigning champion Mike DeVito of Manalapan Township, New Jersey, was the runner-up and consumed 19 hot dogs.[51] | |||||||||||
| 1994 | Mike DeVito Independence Day | 20 | 12 min[52] | The contest was won by the reigning champion, a 32 year old accountant.[53] Future champion Ed Krachie was the runner-up. 40 year old Guardian Angels founder Curtis Sliwa was the third-place finisher and consumed 13 hot dogs. | ||||||||||
| 1993 | ONE-ON-ONE CHALLENGE WITH JAPAN Mike DeVito October 27[54] | 18 | 30 min | The contest was won by a former champion, a Wall Street brokerage firm worker from Manalapan Township, New Jersey. The prize was 365 hot dogs. Joe Gotay of Brooklyn was the runner-up and consumed hot dogs. Willie Dykstra of Brooklyn was the top female contestant and consumed hot dogs. 18 men and 2 women participated. The reigning champion, 290-pound Frankie Dellarosa of Brooklyn, "canceled out at the last minute due to a family emergency"[55] and was unable to defend his title. Instead, he declared that he was now retired from competitions and planned to pursue an acting career,[56] something that he would later have a modest success in.[57] A press account from the time describes this as the 77th annual contest, held regularly since 1916. A later 1993 contest was also sponsored by Nathan's (and recorded by TV Tokyo), but was held under the Brooklyn Bridge in Manhattan instead of at its traditional location. It was won by reigning champion DeVito.[58] Years later it was stated that the prize was the bejeweled mustard-colored belt "created by the descendants of Fabergé" that remains in use today but had supposedly been held in Japan for some years after having been won by a Japanese contestant at Nathan's (presumably at the February 11, 1986, competition). The earliest that the belt's existence is known to be covered by the press is 1996. A woman, Orio Ito of Japan, was the runner-up and consumed 16 hot dogs. Only those 2 contestants participated. | ||||||||||
| Mike DeVito Independence Day | 17 | 12 min | ||||||||||||
| 1992 | Frankie Dellarosa Independence Day | 19 | 12 min[59] | The contest was won by the reigning champion. The prize was 365 hot dogs. Former and future champion Mike DeVito was the runner-up and consumed 17 hot dogs. 18 contestants participated. A press account from the time describes this as the 76th annual contest. | ||||||||||
| 1991 | Frankie Dellarosa Independence Day | 21 | 12 min | The contest was won by a 270-pound, 23 year old engineer[60] and part-time Hofstra University football coach from Queens. The prize was "a 3-foot trophy, topped with an athlete, plate, and hot dog. He also received hats, cups, and a year's supply of hot dogs." 20 contestants participated. A press account from the time describes this as the 75th annual contest, this time held under the motto "No Guts, No Glory". | ||||||||||
| 1990 | Mike DeVito Jay Green Independence Day | 15 | 12 min | The contest was tied by the reigning champion, from Brooklyn, (Green) who was allowed to compete again despite previous contest rules, and a 28 year old from Staten Island (DeVito).[61] There was apparently no tie-breaking eat-off. A press account from the time describes this as the 7th annual contest.[62] | ||||||||||
| 1989 | Jay Green Independence Day | 12 min | The contest was won by the reigning champion, a 215-pound, 31 year old dry wall contractor, who, as per contest rules, was declared "retired" after the competition for being a two-time winner. 24 contestants participated. A press account from the time describes this as the 73rd annual contest.[63] | |||||||||||
| 1988 | Jay Green Independence Day | 10 | 12 min | The contest was won by a 30 year old limousine service manager from Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn. 13 contestants participated. A press account from the time describes this as the 72nd annual contest.[64] | ||||||||||
| 1987 | Don Wolfman Independence Day | 10 min | 29 year old future champion Jay Green was the runner-up and consumed hot dogs. A press account from the time describes this as the 71st annual contest.[65] | |||||||||||
| 1986 | Mark Heller Independence Day | 10 min | The contest was won by a 245-pound man; the prizes were a plaque and a year supply of hot dogs.[66] Robert Gerber was the runner-up and consumed 13 hot dogs. 24 men participated. A press account from the time describes this as the 70th annual contest, held regularly since 1916.[67] An earlier 1986 contest was also sponsored by Nathan's. It was won by a 264-pound, 21-year-old student from Tokyo, Japan. Reigning champion Oscar Rodriguez was the runner-up and consumed hot dogs. Only those 2 contestants participated.[68] | |||||||||||
| ONE-ON-ONE CHALLENGE WITH JAPAN Hiroaki Tominaga February 11 | 10 min | |||||||||||||
| 1985 | Oscar Rodriguez Independence Day | 12 min | The contest was won by a 21-year-old man. More than 40 contestants participated.[69] | |||||||||||
| 1984 | Birgit Felden Independence Day | 10 min | The contest was won by a 130-pound,[70] 17 year old West German women's judo team member from Cologne; she had never eaten a hot dog before the competition. Publicist Morty Matz described her as being only the second female to have ever won the contest. 17 year old U.S. women's judo team member Jean Kanokogi (and daughter of Ryohei and Rusty Kanokogi) of Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn was the runner-up and consumed 8 hot dogs. 20 men and 4 women participated. A press account from the time describes this as the 68th annual contest. | |||||||||||
| 1983 | Emil Gomez Independence Day | 10 min | The contest was won by a 210-pound, 25 year old accountant from the Bronx.[71] His brother, Andre Gomez, was the runner-up and consumed 10 hot dogs. 11 contestants participated. A press account from the time describes this as the 17th annual contest.[72] | |||||||||||
| 1982 | Steven Abrams Independence Day (observed July 5) | 11+ | 10 min[73] | The contest was held on Monday, July 5, the observed date of Independence Day, as the holiday fell on a Sunday. It was won by a 26 year old from Flushing, Queens. He ate one bite of a twelfth hot dog.[74] Sid Smith of Brooklyn was the runner-up and consumed 10 hot dogs, and Risto Puulos of Helsinki was the third-place finisher and consumed 8. | ||||||||||
| 1981 | Thomas DeBerry Independence Day | 11 | 5 min[75] | The contest was won by a 35 year old Housing Authority gardener from Coney Island, Brooklyn. He "downed 11 hot dogs in five minutes and then rushed off with his family to attend a barbecue."[76] | ||||||||||
| 1980 | Joe Baldini Paul Siederman Independence Day | + Eat-off: | 10 min Eat-off: 3 min | The contest was tied by a 190-pound, 25 year old unemployed pharmacist (Baldini) and a 260-pound, 21 year old unemployed actor (Siederman), both from Brooklyn. Each then tied again after a tie-breaking eat-off. The prizes were "two trophies and a pair of yellow plastic bags". Reigning co-champion Jim Mattner was the third-place finisher and consumed approximately 9 hot dogs. 28 contestants participated. A press account from the time describes this as the 64th annual contest.[77] | ||||||||||
| 1979 | Luther Frazier Jim Mattner Independence Day | 10 Eat-off: [78] | 10 min Eat-off: min | The contest was tied by a 172-pound 17-year-old boy from Brooklyn (Frazier) and a 205-pound, 35 year old bond dealer from Ozone Park, Queens (Mattner). Each then tied again after a tie-breaking eat-off. They consumed what was considered a "record" number of hot dogs, when including the eat-off total. A press account from the time describes this as the 63rd annual contest. | ||||||||||
| 1978 | Manel Hollenback Kevin Sinclair Memorial Day | 10 | min | The contest was held on Memorial Day and was tied by a 180-pound, 18 year old basketball player from Newark, New Jersey (Hollenback) and a 75-pound, 10-year-old student (Sinclair). There was apparently no tie-breaking eat-off. 28 contestants participated. A press account from the time describes this as an annual contest held regularly since 1917, except for 1942 and 1944.[79] | ||||||||||
| 1976–1977 | (no documented contests) | |||||||||||||
| 1975 | MEN'S Lonnie Brown Memorial Day | 8 | min, with a 1 min break | An all-female contest was originally scheduled to be held on Memorial Day with the winner to be declared "Miss Coney Island;" the contest was won by a 30 year old market researcher from Manhattan.[80] A contemporary press account indicates that when the contest was held it was ultimately decided to allow men to participate and that the top-finishing male was awarded a plaque;[81] he was a 28 year old National Guardsman from Far Rockaway, Queens. 15 contestants participated. | ||||||||||
| WOMEN'S Sharlene Smith Memorial Day | ||||||||||||||
| 1974 | Walter Paul Paul Sirop Labor Day | (unknown) | (unknown) | The first 1974 contest was held on April 7 (opening day for Coney Island's summer season activities)[82] and was won by a 22 year old Manhattan Community College student from Astoria, Queens; the prize was a trophy.[83] Six contestants participated. The second 1974 contest was held on Independence Day and was won by a 185-pound, 24 year old from Brooklyn; the prize was "a trophy with an emblazoned hot dog on it".[84] The third 1974 contest was held on Labor Day and was tied by Walter Paul—the event's first two-time winner—and Paul Sirop.[85] There was apparently no tie-breaking eat-off. | ||||||||||
| Roberto Muriel Independence Day | 10 | min | ||||||||||||
| John Connolly Opening day of Coney Island's summer season (April 7) | 9 | min | ||||||||||||
| 1973 | (unknown) Independence Day | (unknown) | (unknown) | The first 1973 contest was scheduled to be held on April 7 (opening day for Coney Island's summer season activities) but was canceled due to the 1973 meat boycott. A press account from the time describes this to have been the 23rd annual contest.[86] A contest was scheduled to be held on Independence Day (designated as the 106th anniversary of the invention of the hot dog) and refereed by the "1973 Hot Dog Queen",[87] but no results are known to have been compiled and released to the public. | ||||||||||
| (canceled) Opening day of Coney Island's summer season (April 7) | — | — | ||||||||||||
| 1972 | Melody Andorfer Labor Day | 12 | 5 min | The first 1972 contest was held on Memorial Day and was won by a Brooklyn College student; the prize "was a book of certificates for forty more hot dogs". The second 1972 contest was held on Labor Day and was won by a 105-pound, 18-year-old female community activist from Astoria, Queens; the prize was a paper crown (on July 2, 2021, she received a belt similar to those awarded to recent winners, for her past achievement).[88] 260-pound, 19 year old Gary Silverman of Brooklyn was the runner-up and consumed 10 hot dogs. 8 men and 8 women participated. A press account from the time describes this as the 23rd annual contest. In 2020, the Coney Island History Project interviewed Andorfer.[89] | ||||||||||
| Jason Schechter Memorial Day | 14 | min | ||||||||||||
| 1968–1971 | (no documented contests) | |||||||||||||
| 1967 | Walter Paul Centennial celebration of the invention of the hot dog (June 30) | 17 | 60 min | The contest was held on June 30 (designated as the 100th anniversary of the invention of the hot dog) and was won by a 400-pound, 32 year old truck driver. The prize was "a trophy proclaiming him the world's champion hot dog eater." He consumed the hot dogs over the period of "one hour flat".[90] [91] It is not immediately clear if he ate buns with the hot dogs. |
"Several years" before 1986: unspecified contestant, [68]
1979: unspecified contestant, [64]
1978: Walter Paul (described as being from Coney Island, Brooklyn), 17[93]
1974: unspecified contestant, 16[75]
1968: Walter Paul (described as "a rotund Coney Island carnival caretaker"), 17[63]
1959: Peter Washburn (described as "a one-armed Brooklyn Carnival worker"), [94] or 17[56]
1959: Paul Washburn (described as a carnival worker from Brooklyn), [60]
1959: Walter Paul (described as a 260-pound man from Brooklyn), 17[72]
1957: Paul Washburn, [62]
| No. of Titles | Name | Year(s) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 16 | Joey Chestnut | 2007–2014, 2016–2023 | |
| 9 | Miki Sudo | 2014–2020, 2022–2023 | |
| 6 | Takeru Kobayashi | 2001–2006 | |
| 4 | 1990, 1993 (Independence Day & October 27)–1994 | ||
| 3 | Jay Green | 1988–1990 | |
| 3 | Hirofumi Nakajima | 1996 (December 4)–1998 | |
| 3 | Sonya Thomas | 2011–2013 | |
| 2 | Frankie Dellarosa | 1991–1992 | |
| 2 | Ed Krachie | 1995–1996 | |
| 2 | Walter Paul | 1967 (Centennial celebration of the invention of the hot dog), 1974 (Labor Day) | |
| 1 | Steven Abrams | 1982 | |
| 1 | Melody Andorfer | 1972 (Labor Day) | |
| 1 | Kazutoyo Arai | 2000 | |
| 1 | Joe Baldini | 1980 | |
| 1 | Patrick Bertoletti | 2024 | |
| 1 | Lonnie Brown | 1975 (Memorial Day) | |
| 1 | John Connolly | 1974 (Opening day of Coney Island's summer season) | |
| 1 | Thomas DeBerry | 1981 | |
| 1 | Birgit Felden | 1984 | |
| 1 | Luther Frazier | 1979 | |
| 1 | Emil Gomez | 1983 | |
| 1 | Mark Heller | 1986 | |
| 1 | Manel Hollenback | 1978 | |
| 1 | Steve Keiner | 1999 | |
| 1 | Michelle Lesco | 2021 | |
| 1 | Jim Mattner | 1979 | |
| 1 | Roberto Muriel | 1974 | |
| 1 | Oscar Rodriguez | 1985 | |
| 1 | Jason Schechter | 1972 (Memorial Day) | |
| 1 | Paul Siederman | 1980 | |
| 1 | Kevin Sinclair | 1978 | |
| 1 | Paul Sirop | 1974 (Labor Day) | |
| 1 | Sharlene Smith | 1975 (Memorial Day) | |
| 1 | Matt Stonie | 2015 | |
| 1 | Hiroaki Tominaga | 1986 (February 11) | |
| 1 | (unknown) | 1973 | |
| 1 | Don Wolfman | 1987 |
| scope=col | No. of Titles | scope=col | Name | scope=col | Year(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 | Takeru Kobayashi | 2001–2006 | |||
| 4 | Joey Chestnut | 2007–2010 | |||
| 3 | 1990, 1993–1994 | ||||
| 3 | Jay Green | 1988–1990 | |||
| 2 | Frankie Dellarosa | 1991–1992 | |||
| 2 | Ed Krachie | 1995–1996 | |||
| 2 | Hirofumi Nakajima | 1997–1998 | |||
| 2 | Walter Paul | 1967 (Centennial celebration of the invention of the hot dog), 1974 (Labor Day) | |||
| 1 | Steven Abrams | 1982 | |||
| 1 | Melody Andorfer | 1972 (Labor Day) | |||
| 1 | Kazutoyo Arai | 2000 | |||
| 1 | Joe Baldini | 1980 | |||
| 1 | John Connolly | 1974 (Opening day of Coney Island's summer season) | |||
| 1 | Thomas DeBerry | 1981 | |||
| 1 | Birgit Felden | 1984 | |||
| 1 | Luther Frazier | 1979 | |||
| 1 | Emil Gomez | 1983 | |||
| 1 | Mark Heller | 1986 | |||
| 1 | Manel Hollenback | 1978 | |||
| 1 | Steve Keiner | 1999 | |||
| 1 | Jim Mattner | 1979 | |||
| 1 | Roberto Muriel | 1974 | |||
| 1 | Oscar Rodriguez | 1985 | |||
| 1 | Jason Schechter | 1972 (Memorial Day) | |||
| 1 | Paul Siederman | 1980 | |||
| 1 | Kevin Sinclair | 1978 | |||
| 1 | Paul Sirop | 1974 (Labor Day) | |||
| 1 | (unknown) | 1973 | |||
| 1 | Don Wolfman | 1987 |
| scope=col | No. of Titles | scope=col | Name | scope=col | Year(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 11 | Joey Chestnut | 2011–2014, 2016–2023 | |||
| 1 | Lonnie Brown | 1975 (Memorial Day) | |||
| 1 | Matt Stonie | 2015 |
| scope=col | No. of Titles | scope=col | Name | scope=col | Year(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8 | Miki Sudo | 2014–2020, 2022–2023 | |||
| 3 | Sonya Thomas | 2011–2013 | |||
| 1 | Michelle Lesco | 2021 | |||
| 1 | Sharlene Smith | 1975 (Memorial Day) |
| scope=col | No. of Titles | scope=col | Name | scope=col | Year |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mike DeVito | 1993 (October 27) | |||
| 1 | Hirofumi Nakajima | 1996 (December 4) | |||
| 1 | Hiroaki Tominaga | 1986 (February 11) |
In 2003, ESPN aired the contest for the first time on a tape-delayed basis. Starting in 2004, ESPN began airing the contest live. From 2005 to 2017, Paul Page was ESPN's play-by-play announcer for the event, accompanied by color commentator Richard Shea. In 2011, the women's competition was carried live on ESPN3, followed by the men's competition on ESPN. In 2012, ESPN signed an extension to carry the event through 2017.[97] In 2014, ESPN signed an agreement to carry the competition on its networks for 10 years until 2024.[98]
In 2021, Miki Sudo did not compete, as she was 37 weeks pregnant with her first child with fellow professional eater, Nick Wehry. Sudo instead served as an announcer, alongside Mike Golic Jr., Richard Shea, and Jason Fitz.
| Television history | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Network | Announcers | Viewers | |
| 2003 | ESPN | |||
| 2004 | ESPN | Gary Miller, Richard Shea | 926,000 | |
| 2005 | ESPN | Paul Page, Richard Shea | 860,000[99] | |
| 2006 | ESPN | Paul Page, Richard Shea | 1.46 million[100] | |
| 2007 | ESPN2 | Paul Page, Richard Shea | 1.632 million | |
| 2008 | ESPN | Paul Page, Richard Shea | over 1 million[101] | |
| 2009 | ESPN | Paul Page, Richard Shea | 1.34 million[102] | |
| 2010 | ESPN | Paul Page, Richard Shea, Todd Harris | 1.677 million | |
| 2011 | ESPN | Paul Page, Richard Shea, Renee Herlocker | 1.949 million[103] | |
| 2012 | ESPN | Paul Page, Richard Shea, Renee Herlocker | 1.299 million[104] | |
| 2013 | ESPN2 | Paul Page, Richard Shea, Renee Herlocker | 1.14 million | |
| 2014 | ESPNEWS | Paul Page, Richard Shea, Cari Champion | 402,000;[105] 2.8 million (tape delay on ESPN) | |
| 2015 | ESPN2 | Paul Page, Richard Shea, Melanie Collins | 1.129 million[106] | |
| 2016 | ESPN.com | Paul Page, Richard Shea, Melanie Collins | 1.3 million (tape delay on ESPN)[107] | |
| 2017 | ESPN2 | Paul Page, Richard Shea, Melanie Collins | 1.11 million | |
| 2018 | ESPN2 | Adam Amin, Richard Shea, Melanie Collins | 1.141 million[108] | |
| 2019 | ESPN2 | Adam Amin, Richard Shea, Melanie Collins | 1.36 million[109] | |
| 2020 | ESPN | Mike Golic Jr., Richard Shea, Jason Fitz | 966,000[110] | |
| 2021 | ESPN | Mike Golic Jr., Richard Shea, Jason Fitz, Miki Sudo | 1.35 million[111] | |
| 2022 | ESPNEWS | John Anderson, Richard Shea, Jason Fitz | 1.033 million (tape delay on ESPN)[112] [113] | |
| 2023 | ESPN2 | John Anderson, Richard Shea, Renée James | 1.008 million (weather delay to 2 pm ET)[114] | |
| 2024 | ESPN2 | Jeremy Schaap, Richard Shea, Tiffany Greene | ||
The Nathan's contest has been featured in these documentaries and TV programs:
News sources typically use puns in head-lines and copy referring to the contest, such as Tsunami' is eating contest's top dog again", "couldn't cut the mustard" (A.P.), "Nathan's King ready, with relish" (Daily News) and "To be frank, Fridge faces a real hot-dog consumer" (ESPN).
Reporter Gersh Kuntzman of the New York Post has been covering the event since the early 1990s and has been a judge at the competition since 2000. Darren Rovell, of ESPN, has competed in a qualifier.[115]
Each contestant has his or her own eating method. Takeru Kobayashi pioneered the "Solomon Method" at his first competition in 2001. The Solomon method consists of breaking each hot dog in half, eating the two halves at once, and then eating the bun.
"Dunking" is the most prominent method used today. Because buns absorb water, many contestants dunk the buns in water and squeeze them to make them easier to swallow, and slide down the throat more efficiently.[2]
Other methods used include the "Carlene Pop", where the competitor jumps up and down while eating, to force the food down to the stomach.[2] "Buns & Roses" is a similar trick, but the eater sways from side to side instead.[2] "Juliet-ing" is a cheating method in which players simply throw the hot dog buns over their shoulders.[2]
Contestants train and prepare for the event in different ways. Some fast; others prefer liquid-only diets before the event. Takeru Kobayashi meditates, drinks water and eats cabbage, then fasts before the event. Several contestants, such as Ed "Cookie" Jarvis, aim to be "hungry, but not too hungry" and have a light breakfast the morning of the event.