NEW YORK (AP) — Miki Sudo, a dental hygiene student from Florida, has won her 10th women’s title in the annual Nathan’s Famous Fourth of July hot dog eating contest.
On Thursday, Sudo consumed 51 hot dogs in 10 minutes, setting a new world record for women.
The 38-year-old defending champion won last year after eating 39 1/2 hot dogs, while her personal best is 48 1/2, the women’s world record.
She beat 14 competitors from around the world, including her 28-year-old Japanese rival Mayoi Ebihara. Ebihara came in second after eating 37 hot dogs in 10 minutes. She was also a finalist in 2023.
Competitors came from more than a dozen states and five continents, with prospects from Brazil, Japan, the United Kingdom, South Korea, Australia and the Czech Republic vying for the coveted title in both the men’s and women’s divisions and a $10,000 prize.
THIS IS BREAKING NEWS. The previous AP article is reprinted below.
NEW YORK (AP) — Nathan’s Famous Annual Fourth of July hot dog eating contest will see a series of competitive eaters devour as many sausages as possible in New York City on Thursday – but this year the event’s biggest star will be feasting 1,900 miles (3,000km) away.
Joey “Jaws” Chestnut, who has won 16 of the previous 17 contests, will not be attending the competition for some reason. tiff sponsorshipInstead, he will face soldiers at a U.S. Army base in El Paso later in the day.
That leaves the traditional Brooklyn event wide open for a new winner, with eaters from around the world competing on American Independence Day to see how many hot dogs they can eat in 10 minutes.
Thousands of fans gather each year to watch the event, which takes place outside the original Nathan’s location in Coney Island, Brooklyn, a beach destination with amusement parks and a carnival-like summer culture. ESPN will broadcast the contest live, with the women’s division kicking off at 11 a.m. ET, while the men’s division will begin at approximately 12:20 p.m.
Competitors come from more than a dozen states and five continents, with prospects from Brazil, Japan, the United Kingdom, South Korea, Australia and the Czech Republic vying for the coveted title and a $10,000 prize.
“There’s going to be a new champion,” said Australian James Webb, who holds the world record for eating 70 doughnuts in eight minutes, at a preliminary event in New York on Wednesday.
Last year chestnutIndiana native wolfed his way to the title by eating 62 hot dogs and buns in 10 minutes. The record, which he set in 2021, is 76.
Ahead of the event, ESPN said it would focus on two Americans with dedicated camera shots: Geoffrey Esper, a high school teacher from Massachusetts, in the men’s division, and Miki Sudo, a dental hygiene student from Florida, in the women’s division.
Esper came in second last year with 49 dogs and buns, though her personal best is 51. Sudo won her ninth title in 2023 with 39 1/2, but her best is 48 1/2, the women’s world record.
“I’m going to give it my all,” Sudo said Wednesday. Her rival Mayoi Ebihara of Japan said through a translator that she would eat until she fainted, with a goal of eating 50 hot dogs.
The chestnut tree was originally disinvited of the event through a sponsorship deal with Impossible Foods, a company specializing in plant-based meat substitutes.
Major League Eating, which runs the Nathan’s Famous contest, has since said it has rescinded the ban, but Chestnut decided to spend the holiday with the troops anyway.
Chestnut said he would not return to the Coney Island contest without apologizing.
The event at Fort Bliss Army Base in El Paso, scheduled to begin at 5 p.m. ET, will use traditional sausages, with Chestnut attempting to eat more than four soldiers in five minutes.
While Chestnut won’t be eating vegan products, Impossible Foods will promote the expo’s live stream on YouTube by flying banner-bearing planes over Los Angeles and Miami. The company will also donate to an organization that helps military families based on the number of hot dogs consumed at the event, a spokesperson said.
