At Philadelphia ‘Wing Bowl,’ A World Record is Broken
Could this competitive victory foreshadow an Eagles win at the Super Bowl?
Image: Mitchell Leff/Getty Images
With the Eagles headed to the Super Bowl, it was always going to be an epic year for Philadelphia’s 26th annual “Wing Bowl” bacchanal and chicken wing eating contest, hosted for the past 26 years by local sports radio station 94WIP.
But expectations were bested on Friday morning when professional competitive eater Molly Schuyler shattered the 2015 world record by eating 455 wings over the course of 28 minutes, according to CBS. In the next two minutes, she downed 46 wings for a total of 501. If a wing weighs about an ounce, that’s a cool 30 pounds. Spicy!
The Wing Bowl was started back in ‘93 to poke fun at the fact that the Philadelphia Eagles could never quite get themselves into the Super Bowl. Since then, the event has blown up due to its general reputation as a living stereotype of drunk and belligerent Philly sports fans. Apart from the main event, there are categories for on-site police, firemen and paramedics (“First Responders”) as well as for the “Wingettes,” who are responsible for bringing plates of chicken wings to the contestants. This year, however, the turnout was reportedly down; competitors chowed down to the audience of a half-full arena.
The Wing Bowl was hosted at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, and the competition took place from 6 a.m. to 9 a.m. If you think that’s early, the parking lots opened at 4 a.m. for tailgating.
As a prize for her 501 wings, Schuyler won a 2018 Hyundai Sonata, $5,000 and a custom medal and ring.
Could this world record foreshadow a big win for Philadelphia’s team this weekend? Cock-a-doodle-doo; we’ve been talking chicken wings here, not eagle wings. Looks like you’ll have to wait until Sunday to find out.
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