WATCH: World Champ Joey Chestnut Wins 14th Hot Dog Eating Contest, Sets New Record

Sarah RumpfJul 4th, 2021, 3:06 pm
 
Nathan's Fourth of July Hot Dog-Eating Contest Returns To Coney Island

Photo by David Dee Delgado/Getty Images.

Joey Chestnut successfully defended his title on Sunday, winning his 14th Nathan’s Famous International Hot Dog Eating Contest, and setting a new world record.

Chestnut, a 37-year-old Californian, has won the annual Fourth of July competition every year since 2007, except for a second-place finish in 2015. Last year’s contest was private, with only media allowed to observe, due to the Covid-19 pandemic, but this year it returned to Coney Island, New York with a large crowd happy to take in the spectacle.

Event organizers felt like it was finally feeling like the pandemic was coming to an end, reported CNN correspondent Evan McMorris-Santoro. “People are ready to get back out and party like they did in the old days.”

“An iconic competition and the best ten minutes in sports,” said CNN’s Fredricka Whitfield, announcing Chestnut’s win.

Chestnut managed to down 76 hot dogs and buns during the 10-minute contest, easily trouncing the second place finisher, Geoffrey Esper, by 26.

Seventy-six is a new world record, beating the old record (also set by Chestnut) by 1.

Watch the video above, via CNN.

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Sarah Rumpf - Contributing Editor

Sarah Rumpf joined Mediaite in 2020 and is a Contributing Editor focusing on politics, law, and the media. A native Floridian, Sarah attended the University of Florida, graduating with a double major in Political Science and German, and earned her Juris Doctor, cum laude, from the UF College of Law. Sarah's writing has been featured at National Review, The Daily Beast, Reason, Law&Crime, Independent Journal Review, Texas Monthly, The Capitolist, Breitbart Texas, Townhall, RedState, The Orlando Sentinel, and the Austin-American Statesman, and her political commentary has led to appearances on television, radio, and podcast programs across the globe. Follow Sarah on Threads, Twitter, and Bluesky.