Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest
Ranked #20,737 in Holidays & Celebrations, #456,194 overall
Competitive Eating: Hot Dog Edition
Image from Nathan's Famous website.
Chestnut defeats Kobayashi Again!
On July 4, 2009, at the end of ten minutes, Joey Chestnut came out on top! He ate a fantastical 68 hot dogs! He is now the second person to win 3 consecutive titles. The belt will stay in the United States.The top five finishers are
- Joey Chestnut - 68 hot dogs. (World Record)
- Takeru Kobayashi - 64.5 hot dogs
- Patrick Bertoletti - 55 hot dogs
- Tim Janus - 53 hot dogs.
- Bob Shoudt - 41.75 hot dogs
Full Results
A Brief History

Almost every year since then, the contest has been held at noon (12:40pm beginning in 2004) on Coney Island with hot dogs provided by Nathan's Famous.
In 1997, the competition became sanctioned by the International Federation of Competitive Eating (IFOCE). They now require entrants to be at least 18 years old and under contract with the IFOCE, qualifying by being the defending champion, winning a regional qualifier, getting a wildcard slot, or receiving an invitation from the IFOCE. Officials at the competition are part of Major League Eating, who also provide Bunnettes to count the number of hot dogs eaten. The contest winner gets to take the "Mustard Belt" to his home country until the battle for it begins the next year. Cash prizes were first awarded in 2009 with $20,000 for first place. First place also typically wins a few cases of hot dogs.
ESPN live coverage began in 2004. Coverage began at noon but the competition itself was moved to 12:40pm.
Find more details on Wikipedia. Image by David Shankbone.
Fan of Nathan's Famous?
Competitive Eating on Amazon
Current World Champion
Joey "Jaws" Chestnut (US)
Who will win in 2010?
Contest Trends
Recent first place finishers:
- 2007-2009: Joey Chestnut
- 2001-2006: Takeru Kobayashi
- 2000: Kazutoyo Arai
How many hot dogs?
Competitive Eating on Amazon
Current World Record
68 hot dogs: 6.8 per minute!
Notable Competitive Eaters

Images from IFOCE.
- Joey "Jaws" Chestnut
- Current reigning hot dog champion. Professional competitive eater from San Jose, California. Find him on Wikipedia.
- Patrick "Deep Dish" Bertoletti
- From Chicago, he is currently the second highest ranked competitive eater overall. Find him on Wikipedia.
- Takeru "Tsunami" Kobayashi
- Champion from 2001-2006. Likes to eat the meat and buns separately with a little wiggle known as the "Kobayashi Shake." Find him on Wikipedia.
- Timothy "Eater X" Janus
- From New York City, this man likes to compete with a mask painted on his face. Find him on Wikipedia.
- Sonya "The Black Widow" Thomas
- Probably the most famous woman on the competitive eating circuit today. She holds the women's record in hot dog eating. Find her on Wikipedia.
Watch the Competition
Competitive Eating on Amazon
Nathan's Famous Hot Dog Contest News
- Fat Tony's plans hot-dog-eating contest for charity
- Fat Tony's will have a hot-dog-eating contest at noon Wednesday. The restaurant, at Main Street and Avenue J, will provide Chicago- or Texas-style dogs for a $10 entry fee. Participants will get a free qualifying time hot dog when they sign up.
- Dream Jobs That Are Attainable
- However, competitive eaters are probably best known for hot dog eating contests such as the Nathan's Famous Hot Dogs Fourth of July competition. They may also competitively eat pies, ravioli, hamburgers, chicken wings, grilled cheese sandwiches and a ...
- Jersey guys face down legendary Japanese hot dog champ in competitive eating ...
- Competitive eaters ? the kind you see at Wing Bowl and the Nathan's Famous hot dog eating championship in Coney Island in July ? are often portrayed as a fat, face-stuffing, slobbering behemoths. Squibb, known on the competitive eating circuit as ...
- Aussies compete in international eating contest
- Competitive eating has graduated from fairground hot dog eating contests to a slick worldwide circuit of events that attract big sponsors and pay handsomely to winners. Two Australians have benefited from that sponsorship dollar, and were flown to ...
Hot Dog Eating Contests Rock
Join the Competition

While there are many websites with tips on how to train, the IFOCE emphasizes safety and does not endorse any kind of at-home training.
You may also want to check out Major League Eating, where you can find information on becoming a Bunnette. (What's that?)
For the hot dog eating competition, keep an eye on the Schedule of Events. Your best bet is to win one of these qualifiers in order to secure your spot in the July 4th Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Competition!
Image from Nathan's Famous.
Have Your Own Hot Dog Competition
Competitive Eating on Amazon
Are you a hot dog eating champ?
How many hot dogs can you eat? Are you a local champion ready to move into the qualifying rounds? Should we watch for you on ESPN in the next competition? Also, you can rate this lens at The Isle of Squid or even submit your own lens there.
Thanks for visiting this page! If you liked it, please take some time give props to this page by giving this lens a star rating at the top of the page. If you aren't a Squidoo member, you'll have to join Squidoo before you can rate. Thanks again and leave me if note, if you'd like.
-
Reply
-
prosperity66
Jun 13, 2011 @ 9:27 am | delete
- There are definitely strange contests on Earth, lol. Anyway, when people eat, whether hot dogs or anything else, they hurt nobody and that's the only thing that's important - plus having fun, naturally.
-
-
Reply
-
clouda9
Apr 1, 2011 @ 12:38 pm | delete
- I won't eat nothing but a Nathan's. I am like Susan though, I like to have one and savor every bit :-) Lensrolled to my Nathan's recipe page and it ain't no April prank...you've been blessed and featured on http://www.squidoo.com/my-angel-wings
-
-
Reply
-
Susan52
Aug 18, 2008 @ 8:12 pm | delete
- They'd laugh me out of the competition, but I do love a good hotdog. I just prefer to s-a-v-o-r it. Great lens!
-
-
Reply
-
Treasures-By-Brenda
Jul 23, 2008 @ 3:17 pm | delete
- There is absolutely no way you are going to get me to click on the icon for one of those YouTube videos on eating hotdogs. I can't believe 59...I can take one once in a while but just the thought of 59...
...and, just so you know, I am NOT going to forward this lens to my sons!
(I hope that you can tell that I have meant this in good humor and that I am smiling...excellent lens if on a topic that I find somewhat hard to digest. You've put it together very well.)
Brenda
-
-
Reply
-
WhiteBison
Jul 5, 2008 @ 9:21 am | delete
- Awesome work, you did a really great job with this lens! Interesting. I could eat 4, maybe 5, 6 if I knew I could get that $10,000...other than that, how do they do this? What a talent.
-
by mosaic
Besides all the great family BBQs that happen on 4th of July, what's the most exciting sporting event on Independence Day? I'm a big fan of the Nathan... more »
- 89 featured lenses
- Winner of 11 trophies!
- Top lens » Plant Tycoon Strategies
Explore related pages
- BBQ Menu for 4th of July | Independance Day BBQ BBQ Menu for 4th of July | Independance Day BBQ
- 4th of July Party Flag Cake Recipe ★ 4th of July Party Flag Cake Recipe ★
- Usain Bolt Usain Bolt
- Yelena Isinbayeva Yelena Isinbayeva
- The United States Of America The United States Of America
- Asafa Powell Asafa Powell