Meet the 2024 Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest Contestants

NEW YORK — Competitors weighed in for the 2024 Nathan’s Famous Hot Dog Eating Contest on Wednesdaywith the long-time champion Joey Chestnut is notably absent from the men’s field this year..

The July 4th tradition dates back to 1916 and takes place outside Nathan’s flagship store at Surf and Stillwell Avenues in Coney Island, Brooklyn.

A total of 15 men and 14 women The two men will compete for the $20,000 cash prize and the coveted Yellow Mustard belt. For the first time in years, the men’s competition is open, as Chesnut will not be competing.

The women’s competition begins at 10:45 a.m. on Thursday, followed by the men’s at 12 p.m.

Why is Joey Chestnut banned from the 2024 Nathan’s Famous Hot Dog Eating Contest?

The chestnut tree was the Nathan, reigning champion of hot dog consumption for over a decade, but it is not included in this year’s competition.

Nathan said it was ousted last month because of its partnership with Impossible Foods, a rival company that makes plant-based hot dogs.

They say he is not “banned”.

“He’s never been banned. He’s never been banned. We want him there. We wanted him there. We conceded on all of those things. It was about exclusivity,” said George Shea of ​​Major League Eating. “But the door is always open. He’s the world champion. The greatest champion of all time. We want him in Coney Island. He’s always welcome.”

Chestnut won his first Nathan’s hot dog eating contest in 2007 and has gone on to become a 16-time champion. The 40-year-old holds the all-time record with 76 hot dogs as of 2021 and won last year with 62.

This summer, he will spend the Fourth of July participating in another hot dog eating contest at Fort Bliss in Texas, and will later compete Take on former champion Takeru Kobayashi for a Netflix special which is scheduled to air on Labor Day.

The shadow of Chestnut’s legacy looms large, a reminder of the heights competitors must reach. At Wednesday’s weigh-in, the scale measured not only the weight, but also the hopes and dreams of those seeking to etch their names in history.

“People are going to look at five or six guys now and they’re going to realize the quality of eaters that are maybe right behind Joey, the 1-A guys, so to speak. We beat Joey in contests all year long. Josey loses more contests than he wins. People forget about that because they only see the one on ESPN,” competitor Nick Wehry said.

Wehry is married to Miki Sudo, the reigning champion. She’s about as good as the best men left, but a new competitor has entered the arena.

“Mayoi Ebihara is going to push me. From what she says, she’s going to do 50,” Sudo said. “That’s not an easy number to come up with.”

Who are the competitors in the famous Nathan’s hot dog eating contest 2024?

This year’s competition will feature competitors from the United States — including one from Astoria, Queens — as well as Australia, Brazil, Canada, the Czech Republic, Japan, Korea and the United Kingdom.

Here is the composition of the men’s peloton:

• Geoffrey Esper, 49, Oxford, Mass. – The world’s second-biggest eater, according to Major League Eating. This is his ninth time competing in the competition. Nathan says his personal best is 51 hot dogs and buns, and he holds 19 world records for competitive eating, including eating 23.75 pounds of strawberry shortcake on June 15.
• Nicholas Wehry, 35, Tampa, Fla. – Ranked No. 4 in the world by Major League Eating. This will be his seventh time competing in the competition. His personal best is 48 hot dogs and buns. He is the champion Cuban sandwich eater, having eaten 22 of them in 8 minutes. He is married to the world’s best competitive eater, Miki Sudo.
• James Webb, 35, Sydney, Australia – ranked 5th in the world according to Major League Eating and number one competitive eater in Australia. Nathan’s calls him the “Undisputed Champion of the Southern Hemisphere.” His personal best is 47 hot dogs and buns, and he holds six world records, including World Champion Doughnut Eater, with 70 glazed doughnuts. He set that record on June 7.
• Gideon Oji, 32, Morrow, Georgia – Ranked No. 6 in the world by Major League Eating. His personal best was 48 hot dogs and buns. At 6’11”, he is the biggest eater in Major League Eating. This is his ninth appearance at the competition. He holds world records for eating kale, baked beans, bologna and green chile stew.
• Patrick Bertoletti, 39, Chicago, Illinois – 9th ranked eater in the world, with a personal best of 55 hot dogs and buns. This is his sixth time competing in the competition. He holds 17 world records for competitive eating.
• Max Stanford, 36, Brixton, England – He is ranked number one in the British Eating League, with a personal best of 34 hot dogs and buns. He holds world records for Jaffa cakes, quick pies and eating a 50oz steak in five minutes.
• Darrien Thomas, 25, Orillia, Ontario – 12th eater in the world according to Major League Eating and 1st in Canada. His personal best is 34.5 hot dogs and buns. He is also the youngest competitor this year.
• Ricardo Corbucci, 37, Brasilia, Brazil – 35th biggest eater in the world according to Major League Eating and 1st in South America. This is his first time participating in the popular Nathan’s Fourth of July hot dog eating contest.
• Radim “Steel Rod” Dvořáček, 33, Ostrava, Czech Republic – Ranked #1 competitive eater in the Czech Republic, with a personal best of 21.5 hot dogs and buns. He has competed in over 300 culinary challenges and eating competitions in 17 countries.
• King Yamamoto, 40, Osaka, Japan – First time competing in Nathan’s Famous Hot Dog Eating Contest on July 4. He ate 17 pounds of ramen in 45 minutes and 15 pounds of steak in 50 minutes. Previously won the “Battle of Big Eaters in Singapore” in 2013.
• George Chiger, 45, Pocono Pines, Pa. – Ranked 21st best eater in the world by Major League Eating, with a personal best of 32.5 hot dogs and buns. This is his sixth time competing in the contest. He holds the world record for spray cheese, eating two 8-ounce cans in 59 seconds.
• Derek “Heavy D” Hendrickson, 36, of Las Vegas, Nevada – ranked No. 8 in the world by Major League Eating, with a personal best of 32.5 hot dogs and buns. This is his fifth time competing in the competition. A tamale champion, he once ate 10 pounds of mac and cheese in 20 minutes.
• Sean Yeager, 32, Phoenixville, Pa. – This is his first time competing. His personal best is 36.75 hot dogs and buns. He ate 50 doughnuts and 16 pounds of strawberry shortcake in separate eight-minute competitions.
• William Claude Lyon IV, 36, North Augusta, S.C. – He ate 30 hot dogs and buns in a qualifying event at Cleaveland and has competed in bodybuilding and the Augusta Half IronMan. He has won 30 eating contests, including one for eating 11 pounds of cereal in 38 minutes.

Composition of the women’s field:

• Miki Sudo, 38, Tampa, Florida – 3rd ranked female eater in the world by Major League Eating and 1st ranked female eater. She is a nine-time women’s champion, winning every year since 2014 except for 2021, which she missed due to pregnancy. Her personal best is 48.5 hot dogs and buns. She holds nine world records for competitive eating.

• Mayoi “Ebimayo” Ebihara, 28, Tokyo, Japan – This will be her third time competing. Her personal best is 33.5 hot dogs and buns. She was a finalist in 2023. She has previously eaten 15 pounds of curry in 15 minutes and 116 pieces of sushi in 16 minutes.
• Michelle “Cardboard Shell” Lesco, 40, Tucson, Arizona – 10th ranked eater in the world by Major League Eating. She was the women’s champion in 2021, which Miki Sudo missed due to pregnancy. Her personal best is 32 hot dogs and buns. This is her 13th time competing. She holds the Guinness World Record for eating 2,448 grams of mayonnaise in three minutes.
• Larell Marie Mele, 60, Long Pond, Pa. – 22nd best eater in the world according to Major League Eating. Her personal best is 21.25 hot dogs and buns. This is her 14th appearance in the competition – the longest consecutive streak in the women’s division.
• Katie Prettyman, 41, Marysville, Wash. – Ranked 23rd in the world by Major League Eating, with a personal best of 16 hot dogs and buns.
• Mary Bowers, Seoul, South Korea – 39th ranked eater in the world according to Major League Eating and 1st in Korea. Her personal best is 12 hot dogs and buns. This is her 10th year in the competition.
• Cherish Brown, 35, Edon, Ohio – This will be her third time competing, with a personal best of 10 hot dogs and buns.
• Jocelyn Young, 43, Sherman, Texas – Ranked 29th best eater in the world and number one female eater in Texas, this will be her sixth time competing in the competition.
• Julie Goldberg, 38, Astoria, Queens – The only New Yorker in the competition, she holds a personal best of 9.5 hot dogs and buns. This will be her seventh time competing in the contest.
• Tandra Childress, 38, San Francisco, Calif. – With a personal best of 12 hot dogs and buns, this is her first time at the contest. She previously ate 200 oysters in a restaurant competition.
• Ellen Straub, 29, Palm Bay, Fla. – This is her first time competing. She has a personal best of seven hot dogs and buns. It’s also her first competitive cooking experience.
• Crystal “Crystal Pistol” Ocampo, 28, Vallejo, Calif. – With a personal best of seven hot dogs and buns, this is her first appearance at the competition.
• Elizabeth “Glizzy Lizzy” Salgado, 32, Kern County, Calif. – This is her third time competing in the contest. Her personal best is 8.75 hot dogs and buns.
• Rubianne Garcia, 32, San Antonio, Texas – This is her first time competing in the contest. Her personal best is seven hot dogs and buns.