As the countdown at the annual Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest on July 4th reached zero, Joey Chestnut appeared to be in the lead with “only” 64 hot dogs consumed in 10 minutes. Carmen Cincotti trailed with 45. A quick review, however, determined a counting error: Chestnut had actually eaten a world record 74 hot dogs, and Cincotti had downed 64.
The order of finish at Coney Island didn’t change, and the error was remedied quickly. Still, the brief confusion was enough to make Major League Eating president Rich Shea muse about applying advanced technology to his low-tech sport.