Miki Sudo ate 51 hot dogs and buns in ten minutes at the women’s competition at Nathan’s Famous Hot Dog Eating Contest at Coney Island on Thursday, setting a new record in the women’s division.
Her closest competitor was Mayoi Ebihara, from Japan, who ate 37 hot dogs and buns.
Sudo, a New York native, was crowned the women’s champion of Nathan’s Hot Eating Contest for a tenth time on Thursday. She set a new personal best after eating 48.5 hot dogs in 2020.
She is the first woman to ever break the “50-dog threshold,” as ESPN sports commentators put it.
“I mean, I finally did it,” Sudo said in a follow-up interview with ESPN. “We finally beat 50 guys.”
“So much of this is thanks to Mayoi Ebihara who is pushing me so much,” added Sudo. “Honestly, I prepared even more because I knew she was gonna bring it.”
The winner takes home $10,000 and the second place finisher wins $5,000.
Among those watching the competition was Dawn Spampinato from Bellmore, Long Island. She said she was there to support her sister, who’s competing for the 14th year.
But Spampinato says she’s not exactly a fan of competitive hot dog eating.
“ I think it’s disgusting, but I have to be here to show support for my sister,” she said, before adding, “I actually admire these folks that they’re able to do this.”
Additional reporting by Helen Ho.