Joey Chestnut

Joey "Jaws" Chestnut
Born	(1983-11-25) November 25, 1983 Vallejo, California
Occupation	Professional/ Competitional Eater
Parent(s)	Jerry and Sicilia Chestnut

Joseph Christian "Jaws" Chestnut (born November 25, 1983) is an American competitive eater currently ranked first in the world by the International Federation of Competitive Eating. On July 4, 2007, he won the 92nd Annual Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest, beating six-time defending champion Takeru "Tsunami" Kobayashi by consuming 66 hot dogs and buns in 12 minutes, which set a new world record.

Eating history

The San José State University student entered the competitive eating scene in 2005 with a break-out performance in the deep-fried asparagus eating championship, in which he beat high-ranked eater Rich LeFevre by eating 6.3 pounds of asparagus in 11.5 minutes. That same year, during Nathan's Famous Fourth of July International Hot Dog Eating Contest, Chestnut downed 52 hot dogs and buns, placing second behind Takeru Kobayashi.

Chestnut continued to impress the public by beating Sonya Thomas in the Waffle House World Waffle Eating Championship and placing second to her in a Krystal Square Off World Hamburger Eating Championship qualifier, downing 56 Krystal Burgers in eight minutes to her 57. He later beat her by eating 91 hamburgers in the Finals, a close second to the 97 hamburgers consumed by Kobayashi.

Chestnut qualified for the 2006 Nathan's Contest by eating 50 hot dogs with buns. As July 4 approached, there was speculation that 2006 might be the year when Kobayashi would be beaten. It was not to be, however. Although Chestnut turned in a great performance, leading Kobayashi through most of the contest, the final tally put Chestnut at 52 and Kobayashi at 53-3/4 (a new world record).

In 2007, Chestnut won the Wing Bowl XV, another installment of the annual Philadelphia event at the Wachovia Center. In this competition, he ate 182 chicken wings in 30 minutes, a Wing Bowl champion and record holder.

Furthermore, he is currently one of the few to successfully complete the gallon of milk challenge (in 41 seconds).

On July 4, 2007, Chestnut and Kobayashi battled the field in a record-setting hot dog eating battle in Coney Island, Brooklyn, New York, at Nathan's Contest. Chestnut knocked off Kobayashi 66-63, leading to the latter's first defeat in the contest in six years. The final moments were too close to call, and the judges were involved in the count. The 66 HDBs eaten are now both the Nathan's and the World Record.

On October 28, 2007 between 2:33 and 2:41, Chestnut ate 103 Krystals in the Krystal Square Off World Hamburger Eating Championship in Chattanooga Tennessee. This was Chestnut's personal best, and is the new world record.

Starting off 2008 very well, Chestnut has already set two new world records. He devoured 241 wings in 30 minutes at the Wing Bowl 16 in Philadelphia on February 1, and he ate 78 matzoh balls during Kenny & Ziggy's World Matzoh Ball Eating Championship in Houston, TX on March 2.

Training

Chestnut trains by fasting and by stretching his stomach with milk and water. Three days before winning a chicken-eating contest in Boston, in November 2005, Chestnut drank gallons of water in under one minute and ate buffalo wings to get his stomach accustomed to them. As of July 4, 2006, his competition weight was 220 pounds (100 kg).

World records held by Joey Chestnut

• Sandwiches: 59 peanut butter sandwiches in 10 minutes on june 19 2005

• Waffles: 18.5 waffles (8 oz.) in 10 minutes at Waffle House at the Waffle House World Waffle Eating Championship in Atlanta, GA, on September 4, 2005.

• Jalapeno Poppers: 118 Jalapeno Poppers in 10 minutes during the GoldenPalace.net Intercollegiate Eating Championship at the University of Arizona in Tucson, AZ on April 8, 2006.

• Grilled Cheese Sandwiches: 47 sandwiches in 10 minutes at the Thomas & Mack Center during the GoldenPalace.net Grilled Cheese Contest in Las Vegas, NV on June 10, 2006.

• Pork Ribs: 8.4 pounds pork rib meat in 12 minutes at Chinook Winds at the World Rib Eating Championship in Lincoln City, OR on July 16, 2006.

• Horseshoe Sandwiches: 6 pounds, 5 ounces of horseshoe sandwiches at the Illinois State Fair during the GoldenPalace.net World Horseshoe Eating Championship in Springfield, ILon August 12, 2006.

• Gyoza: 212 chicken and vegetable gyozas during Nisei Week in Little Tokyo in 10 minutes during the GoldenPalace.net World Gyoza Eating Championship in Los Angeles, CA on August 19, 2006.

• Pulled Pork: 9 pounds, 6 ounces in 10 minutes during the Harrah's Pulled Pork Eating Championship in Council Bluffs, IA on September 16, 2006.

• Asparagus: 8.8 pounds of tempura-fried asparagus at the World Deep Fried Asparagus Eating Championship in Stockton, CA, on April 26, 2008 (breaking his previous record of 8.6 pounds on April 28, 2007.

• Chicken Wings: 7.05 pounds of wings in 12 minutes during the TripRewards Ultimate Hot Wing Eating Champion in Manhattan, NY on May 21, 2007.

• Hot Dogs: 66 hot dogs in 12 minutes during the Nathan's Famous Hot Dog Eating Contest in Coney Island, Brooklyn, NY on July 4, 2007.

• Pizza Hut P'Zones: 4.82 pounds of Pizza Hut P'Zones in 6 minutes in New York, NY on July 10, 2007.

• Pulled Pork Sandwiches: 45 Pulled Pork Sandwiches in 10 Minutes during the Myrtle Beach World BBQ Eating Championship in Myrtle Beach, SC on September 1, 2007.

• Hamburgers: 103 Krystal Hamburgers in 8 minutes at the Krystal Square Off Finals in Chattanooga, TN on October 28, 2007.

• Chicken Wings: 241 wings at Wing Bowl XVI in Philadelphia, PA, on February 1, 2008.

• Matzah Balls: 78 matzoh balls at Kenny & Ziggy's World Matzoh Ball Eating Championship in Houston, TX on March 2, 2008.

External links

• International Federation of Competitive Eating (IFOCE) profile
• Sports Illustrated feature on 2006 contest
• The Wave Magazine profile and interview
• Photos from the TripRewards 2007 Ultimate Hotwing Eating Contest
• InHistoric - Chestnut topples Kobayashi
• Eat Feats Profile
• Deep Fried Asparagus World Record, April 2008