(Source)
Japanese competitive eater Takeru Kobayashi has announced his retirement, saying that his health is now his main focus.
Important points:
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Kobayashi, 46, announced the news in the Netflix documentary “Hack Your Health: The Secrets of Your Gut,” which premiered on April 26.
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He is known for winning Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest six years in a row from 2001 to 2006.
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He was dethroned by his longtime rival and current No. 1 in Major League Eating, Joey Chestnut.
The details:
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Kobayashi was born on March 15, 1978 in Nagano and began his career as a competitive eater at the age of 23 in 2000 on the Japanese reality TV show “TV Champion”, where he consumed 60 plates of sushi, 2.7 kilograms of potatoes and 16 bowls of ramen in one go.
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He is credited with inventing a competitive eating technique called the “Kobayashi Shake,” which involves dipping hot dogs in water and then using a special body shake to push the food into the stomach.
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He reportedly set a world record in 2011 by eating 69 hot dogs in 10 minutes. Chestnut currently holds the Guinness World Record for eating 76 hot dogs on July 4, 2021.
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In the documentary, Kobayashi revealed that he had lost his appetite and sense of smell. He said he decided to quit competitive sports to live a “healthy and long life.”
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Experts have found that every time Kobayashi sees food, the areas of his brain associated with eating, satiety and nausea are simultaneously activated. “Your brain is still trained to think you are competing or eating highly processed foods,” said neuropsychologist Annie Gupta.
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Kobayashi was arrested on July 4, 2010, after jumping on stage as a spectator at Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest. Since then, he has not competed in any MLE contests, including Nathan’s Fourth of July contests.
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