Nathan’s Famous Independence Day hot dog contest set for NYC minus its usual muncher WSB-TV Channel 2 [Video]

NEW YORK — (AP) — The annual Nathan’s Famous Fourth of July hot dog eating contest will see a slate of competitive eaters wolf down as many franks as they can in New York City on Thursday — but this year, the event’s biggest star will be chowing down 1,900 miles (3,000 km) away.

Joey “Jaws” Chestnut, who won 16 out of the previous 17 contests, isn’t attending the competition over a sponsorship tiff. Instead, he’ll compete against soldiers at a U.S. Army base in El Paso later in the day.

That leaves the traditional Brooklyn event wide open for a new winner, with eaters from around the world competing on America’s Independence Day to see how many hot dogs they can eat in 10 minutes.

Thousands of fans flock each year to the event held outside the original Nathan’s location in Brooklyn’s Coney Island, a beachfront destination with amusement parks and a carnivalesque summer …