REUTERS/Amr AlfikyJuly 4 (Reuters) - Reigning champion of the annual U.S. Fourth of July hot dog eating contest Joey Chestnut defended his title on Tuesday, clinching his 16th career win by scarfing down 62 franks in 10 minutes. The second place men's finisher, Geoff Esper of Oxford, Massachusetts, was far behind with 49 hot dogs consumed. Chestnut fell short of besting his world record - 76 hot dogs - which he achieved in 2021. She set the women's world record in 2020 with 48.5 hot dogs. Chestnut, by comparison, typically eats nine hot dogs in less than a minute.

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Persons: Joey Chestnut, Amr Alfiky, scarfing, franks, Geoff Esper, Miki Sudo, Chestnut, Gabriella Borter, David Gregorio Our Organizations: REUTERS, ESPN, York City, Thomson Locations: Coney, New York City, U.S, New York, Indiana, Oxford , Massachusetts, York