NEW YORK (Associated Press) – A Japanese eating champion who sat out this year’s Coney Island Fourth of July hot dog contest apparently couldn’t resist the temptation to hotdog afterward.
Competitive eater Joey “Jaws” Chestnut gobbled his way to a fourth consecutive championship Sunday. But he was suddenly upstaged by the surprise appearance of his biggest rival – six-time champion Takeru Kobayashi, who did not compete but crashed the stage after Chestnut’s win and wrestled with police.
“Let him eat! Let him eat!” the crowd chanted as police handcuffed the world’s No. 3 professional eater, dubbed “The Tsunami.”
The 32-year-old Kobayashi did not eat this year because he refused to sign a contract with Major League Eating – the fast food equivalent of the NFL. On his Japanese-language blog, he said he wanted to be free to compete in contests sanctioned by other groups.
But a few days ago, he told Japan’s Kyodo News: “I really want to compete in the event.
“There’s a contract dispute, so they weren’t giving him his freedom,” said Kobayashi’s interpreter, Maggie James.
Minutes earlier, Chestnut downed 54 hot dogs in 10 minutes to win the annual Nathan’s Famous International Hot Dog Eating Contest, televised live on ESPN.
The runner-up was Tim “Eater X” Janus, with a total of 45. Patrick “Deep Dish” Bertoletti came in third with 37 dogs.
Kobayashi disappointed… a hard pill to swallow..Hot dog eater unable to relish the moment.
