Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest - History and Traditions

History and Traditions

According to legend, on July 4, 1916, four immigrants had a hot dog eating contest at Nathan's Famous stand on Coney Island to settle an argument about who was the most patriotic. However, in 2010 a promoter, Mortimer Matz, claimed to have fabricated this legend with a man named Max Rosey in the early 1970s. The Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest has in fact been held at the original location on Coney Island every year since at least July 4, 1972, in conjunction with Independence Day. July is also National Hot Dog Month, according to an AP article on p. 12 of the June 26, 1961 issue of the Hopkinsville Kentucky New Era. In 1978, a contest was also apparently held on Memorial Day at Nathan's, described as an "annual" occurrence in an article on p. A-9 of the May 30, 1978 issue of the Pittsburgh Press. In 1993, a one-time, one-on-one contest under the Brooklyn Bridge was held between Mike DeVito and Orio Ito.

There is a weigh-in with the mayor of New York City prior to the contest. On the day of the contest, the contestants arrive in the "bus of champions".

In recent years, guitarist and songwriter Amos Wengler has performed one of the songs he had written for the contest. A person in a hot dog costume dances as Wengler plays. Some of Wengler's compositions are "Hot Dog Time!", "Hot Dogs, Hot Dogs" and "Where is the Belt?" by John Jones.

Starting in 2011, women and men have competed in separate competitions.

The winner of the men's competition is given possession of the coveted international "bejeweled" mustard-yellow belt, which all winners were given prior to 2011. The belt is of "unknown age and value" according to IFOCE co-founder George Shea and rests in the country of its owner. Due to the string of Japanese wins in the first half of the 2000 decade, the belt had been on display in the Imperial Palace in Saitama, Japan, near the Nakazato Danchi campus. In 2007, Chestnut won the first of five consecutive victories in the contest which has kept the belt in the U.S. to the present day. On July 4, 2011, Sonya Thomas won the inaugural Women's Championship and its "bejeweled" pink belt. More than $40,000 in cash prizes were won by Major League Wiener Eaters at the 2011 Nathan's Famous Fourth of July Contest.