Sonya Thomas

Sonya ‘The Black Widow’ Thomas and “Crazy Legs” Conti, two of the finest competitive eaters in the country, will be joined by a strong field Memorial Day weekend at Trump Plaza’s Beach Bar in Atlantic City, Saturday, May 28, 2pm. At stake is the title of Nathan’s Famous New Jersey Hot Dog Eating Champion and the chance to compete in the Nathan’s Famous Fourth of July International Hot Dog Eating Contest in Coney Island, NY.  The winner of the national title wins $10,000 and a mustard colored championship belt.

Nathan’s Famous recently announced that the top finishing male and the top finishing female competitor will now earn a chance to compete at the finals in Coney Island. Female eating athletes will have a shot at their own Championship Belt in what will be the first-ever women’s-only contest set to occur just prior to the men’s contest, mid-day on July 4.

The 100-pound competitive eating phenom Thomas (ranked No. 4 in the world) has eaten 41 hot dogs and buns in competition, a mark that no other female has achieved, and is looking to break her personal record — also the women’s world record — in Atlantic City. Conti (ranked No. 17) will strive to qualify for his tenth July 4 finals, which would mark the most consecutive appearances by any competitor in Nathan’s Famous history.

“Sonya and Crazy Legs are each looking to make history in Atlantic City by setting a new women’s world record and by becoming the first competitor to advance to Coney Island 10 years in a row,” said George Shea, chairman of Major League Eating. “Though we’ve seen rookie eaters knock off top-seeded eaters before, I know Sonya and Crazy Legs will be bringing their A-game to the table on Memorial Day weekend.”

Challengers include longtime MLE eater Pat Philbin (ranked No. 18) of Moonachie, NJ who seeks his first July Fourth appearance since 2008, and No. 37 ranked Larell Marie Mele, a personal trainer from Long Pond, PA hoping to shock the world with a win over her idol Thomas.

The Nathan’s Famous contest circuit will visit nearly a dozen cities in 2011. Qualifying events will occur at Nathan’s Famous retail locations, water parks, NFL stadiums and Major League ballparks.  The male and female champions from each qualifier will compete in the ESPN televised finals at the original Nathan’s Famous in Coney Island on July Fourth.

According to archives, the Nathan’s Famous International Hot Dog Eating Contest has occurred each July 4th in Coney Island, NY since 1916, the year Nathan Handwerker opened the legendary restaurant. Major League Eating, the governing body of all stomach-centric sport, sanctions the Nathan’s Famous Hot Dog Eating Circuit and ensures the contests are judged professionally and that safety standards are in place at each event.

Tags: Crazy Legs Conti, Nathan’s Famous Hot Dog Eating New Jersey Championship, Sonya Thomas, Trump Plaza Beach Bar

This entry was posted on Tuesday, May 10th, 2011 at 3:51 pm and is filed under Atlantic City Miscellany, Casino News, Events, Family Activities, Food. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.