Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest: Twitter Goes Crazy After Miki Sudo Wins Women's Title With 31 Hot Dogs

Nathan's Hot Dog Eating contest is a staple of the Fourth of July with the men and the women [...]

By Andrew Roberts

Nathan's Hot Dog Eating contest is a staple of the Fourth of July with the men and the women stepping to the stage to gobble down countless dogs for the title. While Joey Chestnut fell short of setting a record with his win today, the same can't be said for the ladies.

Reigning champ Miki Sudo ate 31 hot dogs to win her sixth championship for the women's division of Nathan's Famous Fourth of July contest. The 33-year-old didn't manage to best her personal record 37 hot dogs from 2018, but handily defeated second-place finisher Michelle Lesco and her 26 hot dogs.

"I'm super grateful for everybody who came out here to support," Sudo said after her victory.

With her sixth consecutive hot dog eating championship, Sudo tied phenom Takeru Kobayashi for second-longest winning streak in the competition. Kobayashi held the men's title from 2001 until 2006.

Sudo first became champ in 2014, defeating Sonya "The Black Widow" Thomas in the Nathan's contest. Thomas had been involved in the contest since 2003 and won the female competition since its inception in 2011, setting a record for women at 45 that hasn't been beaten yet.

Fans of Sudo were ecstatic and celebrated the win online.

"Miki Sudo is a machine!" one fan wrote on Twitter. "Amazing win!"

"Miki Sudo is just on another planet of dominance," another user added.

CNN's Jeff Yang also used the victory to point out an interesting tidbit that has defined the competitive eating world over the past decade.

"Competitive eating is a uniquely American tragicomic phenomenon, but it's still amazing to note that its women's division has been dominated by Asian American women since it launched in 2011," Yang wrote. "Sonya Thomas for 3 years, now Miki Sudo for 6, with Juliet Lee in 2nd most of the time."

Despite the historic win, some were upset with ESPN's coverage of the event.

"Yo ESPN, Miki Sudo won her sixth straight championship, but still can't get more than 6 minutes on air?," a user asked the sports broadcaster on Twitter. "Your cameras are there, show the women's contest too!"

According to NBC10 in Boston, Sudo was quoted as saying she felt "wonderful" after walking off the stage following the contest.

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