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Cheating scandal rocks Nathan's 4th of July Hot Dog Eating contest as competitor is accused of stealing finished plate from a rival
A massive cheating scandal has rocked the Major League Eating circuit in the wake of the annual Nathan's Hot Dog contest.
Nick Wehry, the fourth-place finisher on July 4 and husband of women's champion Miki Sudo, is being accused by two unnamed sources of deftly stealing plates from another competitor in order to inflate his own total. Wehry has denied the allegations.
'100% he cheated,' one source told The New York Post.
During competition, participants are served paper plates containing five hot dogs each. Totals are determined by counting the plates and subtracting any remaining dogs after time expires.
Wehry was credited for 46.75 hot dogs on July 4, but that figure grew to 51.75 on the Major League Eating (MLE) website. And as one of the two sources told the Post: 'I can only assume [Wehry] demanded a recount after stealing the plate.'
Contestant Nick Wehry takes part in the 2024 Nathan's Famous Hot Dog Eating Contest
Fourth-place finisher Nick Wehry has denied the allegations that he cheated on July 4
The alleged cheating did not improve his standing in the final results as Wehry would have finished in fourth, regardless. However, it did push his total over the 50-frank threshold, which one source believes was the point of the alleged duplicity.
'There's a number of people who have eaten 40 hot dogs in this competition before, there's a lot fewer who have eaten more than 50, and even fewer who have eaten over 60,' a source told The Post.
'For someone to have on the record that they ate more than 50, makes you part of a very small elite club of competitive eaters.'
Interestingly, Wehry's wife Miki Sudo devoured 51 hot dogs in 10 minutes to set a women's world record on Coney Island last week.
Wehry, meanwhile, told the Post he 'stole nothing' and denies that he 'demanded a recount.'
'If MLE determines I was miscounted then fix my number. My placing did not change if this was the case. I would never want to take a placing or number I didn't earn,' Wehry told the Post via text message.
'I would never cheat at a contest, regardless of why,' he added. 'People that know me know that.'
Video from the competition shows Wehry (center) holding a paper plate as he lingers on stage
Nick Wehry and Miki Sudo do a stare-down during a weigh-in ahead of the July 4 event
Video from the event shows Wehry lingering around the table and holding a plate while talking to his nearest rival. However, nothing conclusive can be deduced from the YouTube clip.
'I guess the video looks like I was mis-plated,' Wehry told the Post. 'Genuinely sorry if it was the case.'
Sudo defended her husband in a phone call with the Post.
'I was watching Nick the entire time, there is a camera on him the entire time, there's no way the judges got it wrong,' she said before abruptly hanging up.
MLE has since released a vague statement saying that the organization investigated the allegations, but offering little else.
'MLE investigated, carefully considering the complaint and reviewing video provided to us,' read the statement provided to the Post. 'Like many other professional sports leagues, it is our policy to not overturn judges' decisions after the final results have been recorded.'