You could call competitive eating a sport -- or you could call it gross. Either way, Nathan's Famous Hot Dog Eating Contest has become an American tradition on the Fourth of July.
The annual eating competition challenges participants to eat as many hot dogs as possible in a 10-minute time period, in front of millions of ESPN viewers and a live audience on Coney Island in Brooklyn, N.Y.
On Thursday afternoon, Joey Chestnut, 29, was crowned the winner of the men's competition for the seventh year in a row. The San Jose, Calif., native ate an impressive 69 hot dogs in 10 minutes. Earlier in the women's competition, Sonya Thomas, of Alexandria, Va., won with 36.75 hot dogs.
If you can stomach it, check out these 10 GIFs from the men's competition on Thursday. Warning: You might want to keep some Pepto-Bismol handy.
Chestnut, known as "Jaws," manages to eat his 69th hot dog in the nick of time, winning $10,000 and the champion's belt.
