Various sports: Joey Chestnut will be absent from the July 4th contest

Joey Chestnut, the living legend of hot dog eating contests, has announced that he will no longer be participating in the famous contest that Nathan hosts every July 4th. New York Post tuesday

Chestnut contracted with a competing company called Impossible Foods, which recently marketed a plant-based vegan sausage that made Nathan ineligible for the competition on Coney Island, a peninsula south of Brooklyn.

Considered by some observers to be the greatest professional athlete in history, Chestnut has won the Fourth of July 16 times in the past 17 years. He set a world record by swallowing 76 burps in 2021. However, the 40-year-old only needed to complete 62 burps in 10 minutes to defend his title in 2023.

A representative from Major League Eating (MLE) revealed that the prestigious 4th of July contest will be allowed. New York Post Everything was done to accommodate Chestnut. Specifically, he was given the go-ahead to enter a contest during Labor Day on Netflix, with no mention of the brand of sausage.

Chestnut received $200,000 to move to Coney Island last year and $1.2 million to stay there for the next 4 years. At the time of writing these lines, “Jazz” has yet to explain the reasons for its decision, which created a shock wave.

In a statement, MLE said it was “devastated to learn that Chestnut chose to represent a competing brand that sells plant-based sausages rather than participate in the July 4 competition.” MLE also said that he sincerely hopes that this “American hero” will return home when he no longer represents a rival company.

Chestnut’s 16 victories at the July 4 tournament surpassed Rafael Nadal’s 14 French Open tennis titles or former Montreal Canadiens forward Henry Richard’s 11 Stanley Cup rings.

Originally from San Jose, Chestnut has always played the humble card, despite the extent of his accomplishments over time. Chestnut actually holds 55 MLE world records.