Takeru "Tsunami" Kobayashi is a Japanese competitive eater.
Sonya Thomas , also known by her nickname The Black Widow, and "The Leader of the Four Horsemen of the Esophagus", is a South Korean-born American competitive eater from Alexandria, Virginia. Thomas joined the International Federation of Competitive Eating in 2003 and quickly rose to the top of the ranks, beating competitive eaters such as Eric Booker.
The cuisine of the Southwestern United States is food styled after the rustic cooking of the Southwestern United States. It comprises a fusion of recipes for things that might have been eaten by Spanish colonial settlers, cowboys, Native Americans, and Mexicans throughout the post-Columbian era; there is, however, a great diversity in this kind of cuisine throughout the Southwestern states.
Carlene LeFevre is a competitive eater from Henderson, Nevada. She and her husband, Rich LeFevre, are said to form the "First Family of Competitive Eating", and are both top ranked members of the International Federation of Competitive Eating. The childless couple has combined to take two of the top seven places in Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest in 2003, 2004, and 2005. She is nicknamed "The Madam of Etiquette" for her relative degree of decorum while consuming mass quantities of food quickly. Her trademark technique is called the "Carlene Pop," in which she bounces up and down while eating to get the food to settle.
Bob Shoudt, also known as "Humble Bob" or "Notorious B.O.B.", is an American competitive eater from Royersford, Pennsylvania.
Gutbusters is a 2002 Discovery Channel documentary following the efforts of three competitive eaters seeking to gain entry into the Nathan's Famous Fourth of July International Hot Dog Eating Contest.
The Glutton Bowl is a two-hour competitive eating special that was broadcast Fox on February 21, 2002 and was sanctioned by the International Federation of Competitive Eating. The special, which was co-executive produced by Nash Entertainment and IFOCE co-founder Richard Shea, featured Mark Thompson and IFOCE co-founder George Shea as hosts/color commentators. The 32-eater tournament was won by Takeru Kobayashi of Japan. The event also included such noteworthy world record eaters as Eric "Badlands" Booker, Dominic "The Doginator" Cardo, Don "Moses" Lerman, Edward "Cookie" Jarvis, and Bill "El Wingador" Simmons.
Joseph Christian Chestnut is an American competitive eater. As of 2022, he is ranked first in the world by Major League Eating.
Tim Janus is an American entertainer, media personality and retired competitive eater known in the competitive eating community as "Eater X". He was a member of the International Federation of Competitive Eating (IFOCE). He performed in contests wearing a painted mask and once stated, "I'd eat anything. One of my goals in life is to eat everything in the world at least once. I'd eat a roll of pennies if I thought I could set a world record. Some day I hope we make contact with beings from other planets. I'd love to eat alien."
Patrick "Deep Dish" Bertoletti is an American competitive eater from Chicago.
Charles Hardy, known as Hungry Charles Hardy, was an American competitive eater from Brooklyn, New York, United States. Hardy was a long-standing member of the International Federation of Competitive Eating. He retired from the sport in 2005 to become the IFOCE's commissioner. During the latter half of 2004, Hungry Charles displayed dominance in eating, placing second and third in major events throughout the USA. Hardy secured victory for six consecutive years in the Civil Service qualifier for the hot dog circuit and he maintains records in sushi, shrimp, and cabbage.
Takako Akasaka is a Japanese competitive eater from Osaka, Japan. She is considered the most successful female competitive eater in Japan.
Eric James "Badlands" Booker, also known by his online pseudonym BadlandsChugs, is an American competitive eater, rapper, and YouTuber. He holds seven Major League Eating recognized world records, three Guinness World Records, is a three-time Nathan's Lemonade Chugging Contest champion, and competed in the Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest every year from 1997 to 2018.
"Krazy" Kevin Lipsitz is a competitive eater from Staten Island, New York, and is affiliated with IFOCE, the International Federation of Competitive Eating. Known for his bear hat and charismatic eating style, Lipsitz has competed in events across the country, and appeared on the Gutbusters television special, which aired on the Discovery Channel in 2002. He is the former American pickle eating champion.
Major League Eating (MLE) is an organization that oversees professional competitive eating events and television specials. MLE's stated mission is to maintain a safe environment for all events, to create a dynamic and enjoyable fan experience, and to help sponsors develop, publicize and execute eating events in a wide variety of food disciplines. The league airs its annual Nathan's Famous Fourth of July International Hot Dog Eating Contest on ESPN.
Dominick “The Doginator” Cardo is an American competitive eater and a member of the International Federation of Competitive Eating (IFOCE). In 2001, he was featured on Glutton Bowl where he took first place in pickled cow tongue. Dominic is currently the IFOCE record holder for whole pickled beef tongue, at 3 pounds 3 ounces in 12 minutes.
Molly Schuyler is an American competitive eater. In 2013, she signed with the competitive eating organization All Pro Eating. She has stated that she "usually swallows her food whole."
Matthew Kai Stonie is an American competitive eater and YouTuber. Stonie won the 2015 Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest, dethroning 8-time defending champion Joey Chestnut. Stonie has gained fame from his YouTube channel, to which he uploads video footage of his eating challenges.
Dale Boone is an American competitive eater who holds several records for, among others, devouring pelmeni and hot dogs. Having been featured on numerous television programmes, he has proclaimed himself "Mouth of the South". Boone claims to be the great grandson of Daniel Boone.
Edward “Cookie” Jarvis is a retired competitive eater and a member of the International Federation of Competitive Eating (IFOCE). He is a real estate agent, married father of two, and cancer survivor. When Cookie Jarvis became a competitive eater in 2001, he was 365 pounds, and retired in 2006 reaching 525 pounds. His best finish in the Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest came in 2003, when he set an American record of 30½ hot dogs in 10 minutes. This put him in second place behind Takeru Kobayashi.
