US hot dog champion chomps to sixth straight victory
Joey 'Jaws' Chestnut scoffs 68 hot dogs in 10 minutes in front of a crowd of
nearly 40, 000 people at the annual Fourth of July International Hot Dog
Eating Contest in New York.
Equalling his personal record, the 28-year-old from San Jose, California,
bested his main rival this year by 16 dogs at the Coney Island contest.
In all, 15 male eaters from the US
and Canada
attempted to capture the celebrated Mustard Yellow Internaitonal Belt.
Mr Chestnut, the number one ranked eater in the world according to Major
League Eating, made a name for himself in 2007 when he halted then reigning
champion Takeru Kobayashi's streak of six wins.
He holds the titles of World Wonton Eating Champion, with 390 wontons in eight
minutes and World Bratwurst Eating Champion, gobbling up 35 bratwurst in 10
minutes.
Like any professional athlete, Mr Chestnut said he was aware the strain he was
putting his body under in the pursuit of sporting excellence.
"No joke. I was eating like a madman. It's like a marathon runner in the
26th mile, " he said.
"I was pushing my body to the absolute limit and the last minute is the hardest. Right now it's all settling and I'm starting to feel better and better.
"Eventually I'm just going to have to take a nap."
In the women's competition, reigning champ Sonya 'The Black Widow' Thomas took home the top prize with 45 hot dogs, beating the record of 41 she set in 2009.
Asked about the secret to her success, the 44-year-old said it is all about being mentally prepared.
"I know that I can do 45 and 50 hot dog buns but not in ten minutes. But it's more mental control. Mentally, I say I'm going to eat and today I set my goal and I don't want to disappoint myself and I push myself. I'm really fighting with me and it worked."
Like Mr Chestnut, Ms Thomas competes in several disaplines. She holds a total of 25 world records, including Clam Eating Champion, which she took with 26 clams in six minutes, World Cheesecake Eating Champion and Jalapeno Eating Champ, which she won eating 274 jalapenos in 10 minutes.
"I was pushing my body to the absolute limit and the last minute is the hardest. Right now it's all settling and I'm starting to feel better and better.
"Eventually I'm just going to have to take a nap."
In the women's competition, reigning champ Sonya 'The Black Widow' Thomas took home the top prize with 45 hot dogs, beating the record of 41 she set in 2009.
Asked about the secret to her success, the 44-year-old said it is all about being mentally prepared.
"I know that I can do 45 and 50 hot dog buns but not in ten minutes. But it's more mental control. Mentally, I say I'm going to eat and today I set my goal and I don't want to disappoint myself and I push myself. I'm really fighting with me and it worked."
Like Mr Chestnut, Ms Thomas competes in several disaplines. She holds a total of 25 world records, including Clam Eating Champion, which she took with 26 clams in six minutes, World Cheesecake Eating Champion and Jalapeno Eating Champ, which she won eating 274 jalapenos in 10 minutes.
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