• Every summer since 1916, a hot dog eating contest has taken place on Coney Island in Brooklyn, New York. It is sponsored by and held at the famous Nathan's Famous restaurant, and the date is July 4th.

  At the 2009 competition, Joey Chestnut defended his title as the hot dog eating champion. Chestnut ate 68 hot dogs in ten minutes to set a new world record.http://www.nydailynews.com/ny_local/2009/07/04/2009-07-04_nathans_.html

• 1. Started: 1916
  2. First winner: James Mullen
  3. First prize: $20,000 to the winner http://www.nydailynews.com/ny_local/2009/07/04/2009-07-04_nathans_.html
  4. Reigning champion: Joey Chestnut
  5. Most hot dogs eaten in one competition: 68 by Chestnut in 2009 http://www.nydailynews.com/ny_local/2009/07/04/2009-07-04_nathans_.html

• 2008 Contest

  Joey Chestnut and Takeru Kobayashi ran neck and neck through the 10 minute competition, tying at 59 hot dogs eaten each. The competition went into a tie-breaker, in which each man was given five dogs to eat. Chestnut emerged victorious, finishing his five dogs first.

• Who Let the Dogs Out?

  The contest began in 1916 to settle a bet among four men about being the most patriotic. James Mullen ate 13 hot dogs in 10 minutes to win, and so began the most famous eating contest in the world.Village Voice: The (Hungry) Odd Couple of the Nathan's Hot-Dog-Eating Contest (July 2, 2008) In recent years, Japanese competitors have dominated the competition. Takeru Kobayashi, known to fans as "The Tsunami," won six consecutive years in a row from 2001 through 2006,IFOCE: Takeru Kobayashi Eater Profile but was defeated in 2007 and 2008 by Joey Chestnut.The New York Times: The Winner and New Champion, With 66 Hot Dogs (July 5, 2007)

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