Miki Sudo wins women’s division of Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest

Miki Sudo has won her 10th women’s title at the annual Nathan’s Famous Fourth of July Hot Dog Eating Contest.

The defending champion scarfed down 51 hot dogs in 10 minutes, crushing the 39 1/2 hot dogs that she ate last year and also beating her personal best of 48 1/2. The 51 hot dogs is a new world record for women.

She defeated 14 competitors from around the world, including 28-year-old Mayoi Ebihara of Japan, who came in second after eating 37 hot dogs in 10 minutes. Ebihara was also the runner-up in 2023.

ESPN will broadcast the men’s division at approximately 12:20 p.m

Competitors have come from over a dozen states and five continents, with prospects from Brazil, Japan, the United Kingdom, South Korea, Australia and the Czech Republic vying for the coveted title in men’s and women’s divisions and $10,000 prize money.

But this year, the event’s biggest star, Joey “Jaws” Chestnut, will be chowing down 1,900 miles (3,000 km) away.

Chestnut, who won 16 out of the previous 17 contests, isn’t attending the competition over a sponsorship tiff. Instead, he’ll compete against soldiers at a U.S. Army base in El Paso later in the day.

That leaves the traditional Brooklyn event wide open for a new men’s winner, with eaters from around the world competing on America’s Independence Day to see how many hot dogs they can eat in 10 minutes.

Thousands of fans flock each year to the event held outside the original Nathan’s location in Brooklyn’s Coney Island, a beachfront destination with amusement parks and a carnivalesque summer culture..

Last year, Chestnut, of Indiana, chewed his way to the title by downing 62 dogs and buns in 10 minutes. The record, which he set in 2021, is 76.

Ahead of the event, ESPN said it would focus on two Americans with dedicated camera shots: Sudo and Massachusetts high school teacher Geoffrey Esper in the men’s division.

Esper came second last year with 49 dogs and buns, though his personal best is 51.

Chestnut was initially disinvited from the event over a sponsorship deal with Impossible Foods, a company that specializes in plant-based meat substitutes.

Major League Eating, which organizes the Nathan’s Famous contest, has since said it walked back the ban, but Chestnut decided to spend the holiday with the troops anyway.

Chestnut said he wouldn’t return to the Coney Island contest without an apology.

The event at the Fort Bliss army base in El Paso, scheduled to begin at 5 p.m. ET, will use traditional franks, with Chestnut attempting to out-eat four soldiers in five minutes.

Even though he won’t be eating their vegan products, Impossible Foods is promoting Chestnut’s YouTube livestream of the exhibition by flying airplanes with banners over Los Angeles and Miami. The company will also donate to an organization supporting military families based on the number of hot dogs eaten at the event, a spokesperson said.