(Lewisville) October 1, 2012 – Joey “Jaws” Chesnut, the top-ranked competitive eater in the world according to Major League Eating, ate 102 tamales in 12 minutes to set a world record and win the 8th annual World Tamale Eating Championship on September 29 in Lewisville, Texas.
Tim “Eater X” Janus, a four-time winner of the tamale championship and holder of the previous world record, placed second with a total of 87 tamales – 16 more than the former record, but still 15 behind Chesnut.
“The tamale discipline is among the most difficult in the competitive eating world, requiring significant jaw strength and stomach capacity,” said George Shea, chairman of Major League Eating. “Watching the event is enough to quicken the pulse and lift the heart of any American who has both.”
The World Tamale Eating Championship was held during the annual Western Days festival in Old Town Lewisville. The event, organized by the Lewisville Convention and Visitors Bureau and officially sanctioned by Major League Eating (MLE), paid a total purse of $3,500 to the top six finishers. Dat’s Good BBQ, a family-owned Lewisville restaurant, provided the traditional hand-made pork tamales for the competition.
Chesnut, who lives in San Jose, Calif., has won five straight Nathan’s Famous Hot Dog Eating Championship titles and holds more than 20 MLE world records. He briefly held the world record in tamales after eating 53½ during a May 2007 event in Houston, but lost that record to Janus later the same year. This was his first time to compete in Lewisville. His visit was rewarded with a $1,500 first-place prize.
Janus, a New York City resident who attended Southern Methodist University in Dallas, is currently ranked third in the world by MLE. He has won all four of his previous appearances in Lewisville. He received $1,000 for placing second in today’s contest.
Seventh-ranked Adrian Morgan of Baton Rouge placed third for the third consecutive year, eating 68 tamales for a personal-best total that earned a $500 prize.
Other top finishers were Juan Rodriguez of Las Vegas; Nate Biller of Wichita Falls; and Yasir Salem, a Texas native now living in New York City. Making a surprise top-10 finish was first-time competitor Cole Ellis, a Lewisville firefighter/paramedic who won a city employee contest earlier in the week to earn a spot at the table on Saturday.
Overall, the 12 competitors combined to eat 555 tamales during the 12-minute contest (an average of 46.5 per person), turning in four of the 12 best individual results in the history of the event.
MLE is the governing body of all stomach-centric sports, conducting more than 70 events annually including the Nathan’s Famous Fourth of July International Hot Dog Eating Contest in Coney Island, N.Y. The competitive eating community, which numbers more than 3,000 veteran and rookie athletes, travels the nation in search of top titles and the glory that they provide.
2012 Final Results
102 Joey Chesnut, San Jose, CA
87 Tim Janus, New York City, NY
68 Adrian Morgan, Baton Rouge, LA
60.5 Juan Rodriguez, Las Vegas, NV
50.5 Nate Biller, Wichita Falls, TX
42 Yasir Salem, New York City, NY
34 Brent Ricord, Keller, TX
27 Gary Klucken, Waco, TX
24 Cole Ellis, Lewisville, TX
22 Timothy Morris, Lewisville, TX
21 Alex Perez, Grand Prairie, TX
17 Steve Harrell, Carrollton, TX
Shared by James Kunke, Community Relations and Tourism Director, City of Lewisville.
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‘Jaws’ tastes victory at World Tamale Eating Championship in Lewisville added by Editor on
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