My dad LOVED Nathan’s Hot Dogs. He used to go there when he was a kid in Sheepshead Bay. Hopefully the weather will be good for this year’s event because I’m planning on being there. I’m rooting for you both, Joey Chestnut and Sonya Thomas! (Relevance to us? It’s Brooklyn, it’s summer, it’s hotdogs – that’s eating locally and seasonally in my book!) Here’s the full press release:
The Annual Competition Will Feature Heated Battles
Between Joey Chestnut and Upstart Matt Stonie,
and Between Female Eaters Sonya Thomas and Newcomer Miki Sudo
The 2014 Nathan’s Famous Fourth of July International Hot Dog-Eating Contest will take place in Coney Island at high Noon on Friday, July 4, 2014. The annual contest will occur, as it has for the better part of a century, at the Nathan’s Famous flagship restaurant at the corner of Surf and Stillwell avenues in Brooklyn, NY.
Pre-show festivities will start at 10:30AM and will include performances by a variety of musical acts, including The Heavenly Chillbillies. The women’s competition will begin at 11:30AM, while the men’s competition will start at 12:30PM and will be broadcast on at 2 PM on ESPN 2.
Joey Chestnut of San Jose, CA, holds the world record for eating 69 Nathan’s Famous Hot Dogs and Buns in 10 minutes, and he will seek his eighth straight title this year. However, 22-year-old Matt Stonie, also of San Jose, promises to beat Chestnut. Stonie has already defeated Chestnut in a gyros-eating competition this year.
In the women’s competition, Sonya Thomas of Alexandria, VA, will defend her title as Female Champion. She set a world record by consuming 45 Hot Dogs and Buns in 10 minutes, but many expect her to fall to Miki Sudo, of Las Vegas, NV, who recently downed 104 hard-boiled eggs in eight minutes.
In recent years, an estimated 35,000 fans have made the pilgrimage to Surf and Stillwell avenues in Coney Island to watch the contest in person. The ESPN telecast of the event drew an audience of more than 1 million viewers in 2012. As part of the event, Nathan’s Famous will make a donation of 100,000 Nathan’s Famous hot dogs to the Food Bank for New York City, as it does each year.
According to archives, the Nathan’s Famous Fourth of July International Hot Dog Eating Contest has occurred each July 4th in Coney Island, NY, since 1916, the year Nathan Handwerker opened the legendary restaurant. Major League Eating, the governing body of all stomach-centric sport, sanctions the Nathan’s Famous Hot Dog Eating Circuit and ensures the contests are judged professionally and that safety standards are in place at each event.
(Photos courtesy of Nathan’s Famous and Major League Eating)
Joey Chestnut and Sonya Thomas, 2014 Champions! The 100-pound Thomas (of Alexandria, Va) has won the women’s contest for all three years.
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