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For the first time in its 95-year history, Nathan’s annual hot dog eating contest in Coney Island had two winners – Joey Chestnut, who ate 62 hot dogs in 10 minutes and Sonja “the Black Widow” Thomas, who consumed 40 dogs in 10 minutes.
Thomas’ win was the first for Nathan’s new Women’s Division, which debuted this year. Both Chestnut and Thomas picked up the coveted “golden mustard belt” and a check for $10,000. This marks Chestnut’s fifth win, although he didn’t beat his record of consuming 68 hot dogs in 2009.
Nathan’s hot dog eating contest started in 1916, the year Nathan’s opened in Coney Island Brooklyn. At first it was a marketing gimmick, but the contest caught on and received world-wide attention. The contest has been held yearly on the Fourth of July, except in 1941, when it was cancelled due to World War II and in 1971, when it was cancelled as a protest to civil unrest.
Watch Joey Chestnut scarf down his 62 dogs for the win:
Not to be outdone, Sonja “Black Widow” Thomas eat 41 dogs for the Women’s title here:
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