Renowned eating champion Joey "Jaws" Chestnut defied a rain delay and devoured his way to yet another victory at the famous Nathan's Fourth of July hot dog eating contest. In an impressive display, Chestnut consumed 62 franks and buns within a span of 10 minutes, leaving his closest competitor, Geoffrey Esper, and the other 15 international contestants far behind. Esper, hailing from Oxford, Massachusetts, managed to ingest 49 hot dogs and buns.
In the women's division, defending champion Miki Sudo fought hard to consume 39 1/2 hot dogs and buns, securing her ninth consecutive Mustard Belt. However, prior to the men's competition, inclement weather swept over Coney Island in New York City, resulting in a two-hour delay.
Reflecting on the turbulent turn of events, Chestnut expressed his emotional roller coaster ride while enduring the rain, uncertain whether the prestigious competition would proceed at all. The 39-year-old athlete, originally from Westfield, Indiana, first entered the Nathan's contest in 2005 and has held the title since 2015. Although his record-breaking achievement of 76 hot dogs in 2021 couldn't be repeated due to the weather disruption, Chestnut acknowledged that everyone was affected by the circumstances.
In the women's event, Sudo faced stiff competition from the 27-year-old Mayoi Ebihara, as the real-time counter indicated a closely contested battle throughout the contest. Ultimately, a final count of plates settled the score, confirming Sudo's victory with her tally of 39 1/2 hot dogs, surpassing Ebihara's 33 1/2. Sudo, aged 37 and from Port Richey, Florida, expressed disappointment in her winning total, falling short of her personal best. She attributed her distraction to observing Ebihara during the early moments of the contest but managed to recover from a belch and regain her focus.
Participants from various countries, including England, Canada, South Korea, Japan, Brazil, and Australia, joined the annual competition on Coney Island, as reported by ESPN.
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