Historic: For The First Time Ever, A Hot Dog Has Won Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest

Get ready for the most inspiring story you’ll read all day, because competitive eating’s newest champion has just made history in a truly remarkable way: A hot dog has won Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest for the very first time.

Move over, Joey Chestnut and Takeru Kobayashi! This hot dog is now the biggest name in competitive hot dog eating!

Since the eating competition began in 1972, every winner of Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest has been a man or a woman – until now, with this year’s title going to a 6.75” hot dog that lodged itself in the throat of competitive eating rookie Anthony Diletti, 48, of Staten Island, and suffocated him to death before he was able to finish it. As Diletti’s very first hot dog of the event, this stunning upset was determined by a rare stipulation in the eating contest’s official rulebook, which states that if “a Nathan’s Famous hot dog holds a competitor’s score to zero, the contest is immediately concluded, and said hot dog is deemed victor.” 

“Thanks to this hot dog’s unprecedented achievement, no one will ever again doubt that hot dogs can compete in Nathan’ Hot Dog contest at the same level as the eaters themselves,” Major League Eating president Richard Shea remarked following the hot dog’s victory, before noting that all of Diletti’s family and friends were present at the contest and did indeed witness his death. “Sometimes, the best offense is a good defense, and the way this hot dog stood its ground inside the late Mr. Diletti’s mouth proves it.”

Wow. Between Caitlin Clark and this hot dog, 2024 is turning out to be a landmark year for inspiring sports narratives!

What an exciting time in competitive eating history. Without a doubt, this hot dog’s incredible dark horse triumph is bound to draw so many new fans to professional eating. Congratulations to this hot dog and our condolences to Mr. Diletti’s loved ones!