Big challenge to mark festival’s 21st birthday

The World Oyster Eating Championship at the 21st Hillsborough Oyster Festival returns this weekend which will see some major international hitters coming up against local champion, County Down’s Colin Shirlow.
By The Newsroom
Published 5th Sep 2013, 21:28 BST
The World Oyster Eating Championship at the 21st Hillsborough International Oyster Festival is returning bigger and better than ever on SaturdayThe World Oyster Eating Championship at the 21st Hillsborough International Oyster Festival is returning bigger and better than ever on Saturday
The World Oyster Eating Championship at the 21st Hillsborough International Oyster Festival is returning bigger and better than ever on Saturday

Known as the ‘UK’s Oyster King’, Colin, who has won the championship eight times, holds the Guinness World Record for knocking back a whopping 233 oysters in just three minutes.

As well as competitors from Australia, New Zealand, Japan, Spain, South Africa, Lithuania, England, Scotland and Wales, two American giants of ‘competitive eating’ are arriving in the Georgian village to threaten Colin’s crown at the big eat-off tomorrow (Saturday).

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The larger than life Bob Shoudt, known to his legion of fans as Notorious B.O.B., holds a raft of world records in competitive eating, including devouring 39 Krystals (which is a small, square hamburger slider) in two minutes and 34.75 beef brisket sandwiches in ten minutes.

The competitive eater, who is ranked 5th in the world by IFOCE (International Federation of Competitive Eating), is determined to make this an event that is talked about for years to come.

The Pennsylvania man joked that he doesn’t want to “cause an international incident by defeating ‘The Great One’”.

Notorious B.O.B. has tangled many times with another legend of the competitive eating circuit who is also mounting a challenge to Colin Shirlow, Matt ‘Megatoad’ Stonie, from San Jose, California.

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This challenger, who is ranked 4th in the world, holds many records and these include eating 31 Slugburgers in ten minutes and 5.5lb (2.45 kilos) of birthday cake in just under nine minutes.

TRAINING

Delighted to be competing in “an incredible festival and very prestigious contest”, Matt says his year-round training for many different US contests means he is in top shape physically for the big challenge.

Fact: Over 12,000 pints of Guinness, 4,000 glasses of Champagne and 6,000 oysters will be enjoyed at what has become one of Europe’s leading food festivals.