
Mary Bowers, a Korean adoptee to the United States, recently competed in the Nathan’s Famous International Hot Dog Eating Contest in New York, representing Korea.
This was her ninth participation in the July 4 annual competition and the second time representing her native country, following the restoration of her Korean citizenship last year.
Bowers, whose Korean name is Jung Nayoung, describes herself as a “messy eater” since childhood, with a non-stop appetite that led her to pursue a career as a competitive 커뮤니티 eater over the past decade. Her impressive feats include eating up to 80 chicken wings in 10 minutes, 65 gyoza dumplings in the same timeframe, and 14 donuts in just eight minutes.
In the latest hot dog eating contest, she ranked in the top 10 in the women’s competition by finishing seven and a quarter hot dogs in 10 minutes.
“I do wish that I had performed better, although obviously I had other priorities happening in my life, so I know that I was definitely not at peak performance,” Bowers said in a recent interview with The Korea Times, noting that her best record is 12 and a half hot dogs.