It is said that in 1916, four immigrants gathered in front of Nathan's Hot Dog Stand and had a hot dog eating contest to settle who was the most patriotic (boy, that sounds a little lame). Anyway, after 12 minutes Jim Mullen ate 13 hot dogs and the other three could not continue.
(Information courtesy of Wikipedia.com, which is a great free online encyclopedia by the way)
This was the beginning of the Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest that now happens every year on the 4th of July. The event is now fully sanctioned by the International Federation of Competitive Eating (www.ifoce.com). The prize for winning: the coveted belt (shown below) and one year's supply of Nathan's hot dogs.
What has made this competition so exciting for many people in the past couple years is the domination of one competitor, Takeru "Tsunami" Kobayashi. From Nagano, Japan (Age 27, 132 lbs), he is often referred to as the Michael Jordan of Competitive Eating. Kobayashi has won the contest for the last four years, every year since he began competing. Even more amazing are his margins of victory. Last year, he won with 53.5 hot dogs, more than 15 hot dogs ahead of 2nd place. Here is Kobayashi posing with a plate full of 53.5 hot dogs (his latest world record):
His techniques include snapping each hot dog in two, dipping both halves in water, and swallowing each half whole. He is also known for his little dance, the "Tsunami Wiggle," which some say is his key to success (allowing the hot dogs to settle in his stomach).
Also notable is the 3rd place finisher from last year, Sonya Thomas, from Alexandria, VA (Age 37, 105 lbs). Her list of eating records is quite extensive and is by far the best female competitor.
2 comments:
ANY OTHER NOTABLE MENTIONS????
Sorry about that, Ed. I added in the first paragraph to acknowledge your impressive accomplishment.
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