Every 4th of July, millions of people in the United States take to watching the most famous eating contest in the country, and the Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest 2015 brings back an old champion, Joey "Jaws" Chestnut, to defend his ongoing Guinness World Record-breaking title.
Back in 2013, Chestnut set a world record after eating 69 hot dogs and buns in just 10 minutes at that year's Independence Day celebration, and now he's back at the Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest 2015 to claim his title back in the famous celebration.
According to Newsday, Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest 2015 will see the San Jose, California, native return to the iconic Coney Island contest to seek his ninth title in front of a live crowd and ESPN2 viewers prepared to see him take on the challenge to see whether he'll manage to make the historic turn.
AJC reports that Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest 2015 will be taking place this Saturday in Coney Island, New York, and there will be two major categories, in men's and women's hot dog eaters, with Sonya Thomas (the female record-holder for most hot dogs gobbled down) trying to regain her title from Miki Sudo, who beat her last year after downing 34 hot dogs.
The winners of Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest 2015 will be taking home $40,000, with Nathan's Famous also donating 100,000 hot dogs to New York City's Food Bank, the major body of competitive eating in all different categories, not just hot dogs.
This year marks the 99th anniversary of this iconic 4th of July tradition, founded in 1916.
"The hot-dog contest is a physical manifestation of the concept of freedom," said George Shea, the man behind Nathan's Famous, to Politico. "The contest has come to represent the spirit of July 4th itself. That is why people go to the event. It is kind of a pilgrimage to the center of July 4th and the center of freedom."
ESPN's Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest 2015 coverage will begin at noon - happy Independence Day to those who love this almost century-old tradition!