Wayne Algenio keeps ‘balut’ crown: 27 in 5 minutes (or is it 37?)
Waynewonder: Undefeated
Waynewonder is back as 28-year-old Queens man Wayne Algenio wolfed down 27 ‘balut’ eggs in five minutes to win the Jeepney-Maharlika Balut-Eating Contest.
But wait. Wayne told The FilAm that there could be a miscount.
“I’m watching my footage,” he said. “I think they had a miscount. It’s actually 37.”
He said his video showed he got four baskets of duck embryo eggs — at 10 eggs per basket. He told the organizers about the possible miscount, and, “They said they will correct.”
For now, 27 is a pretty impressive number from last year’s 18 ‘balut’ in five minutes. At 37, Wayne actually doubled his own record.
“I was very nervous this time,” he said. “This is first time I’m defending a title. I’m glad it’s done.”
He said he got a lot of ribbing from rivals who teased about wanting to beat him. “It’s all good-natured but still a lot of pressure.”
The sterilization technician from Hollis, Queens came to the contest with friends and family members wearing Waynewonder T-shirts.
“Crowd was great. Hope they had a bigger space, it was packed,” he said. This year’s contest was held at the Hester Street Fair.
For winning, Wayne received another belt, which he proudly held up to cheers from the crowd and snapshots from photographers. It came with a basket of goodies that included some bottles of spirits, vodka, Sky Flakes crackers, Jufran ketchup, mango juice and a gift card from Jeepney-Maharlika restaurants which organized the competition.
Wayne’s closest rival is a Hispanic contestant named Carlos who consumed 23 ‘balut.’ Carlos and his girlfriend were among the dozen New Yorkers who aspired to capture Wayne’s hard-fought crown.
“It’s all very technical for me,” he replied when I asked how he prepared for the race. “I do other food contests so I always train to have capacity. At 37 eggs I’m not full capacity at all compared to my other previous contests.” He was still hungry so he and his friends grabbed something to eat after the contest.
Is the third ‘balut’ contest up there in his 2014 calendar?
Wayne is not sure, citing health issues and his mother’s anxiety every time he goes out speed-eating.
“I want to but I can’t say right now,” he said. “My mom gets pretty nervous.”
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