Simsbury Native, Competitive Eating Icon 'Eater X,' Dies At 49

SIMSBURY, CT — If watching the Nathan's Famous Hot Dog Eating Contest on ESPN every July 4 is part of your Independence Day tradition, you probably cannot forget one of the nation's more colorful competitive eaters.

Donning face paint and having a charismatic stage presence (think the 'Ultimate Warrior' from pro wrestling or 'Racer X' from the classic Speed Racer cartoon), the man known as "Eater X" actually hailed from Simsbury.

Sadly, Timothy Janus, a Simsbury native who became one of competitive eating's most recognizable personalities as "Eater X," died Sept. 16 following a battle with cancer. He was 49.

According to his publicist, who released obituary information on Monday, Janus spent 12 years competing professionally, from 2006 to 2018, and rose as high as No. 2 in the world rankings behind Joey Chestnut.

Known for wearing a painted Viking mask inspired by his childhood interest in professional wrestling, Janus competed during a period participants dubbed competitive eating's "trophy era," when competitors traveled around the country seeking championships involving an array of foods.

It was during this era that binge-eating icon Joey Chestnut became one of America's greatest sports heroes.

But he wasn't alone atop the competitive eating circuit.

Janus won world titles in several events. He ate four pounds of tiramisu in six minutes to become the world tiramisu-eating champion, consumed 10.5 pounds of ramen noodles in eight minutes, and won a nigiri sushi competition by eating 141 pieces in six minutes.

His contemporaries included Chestnut, Takeru Kobayashi, Sonya Thomas, Eric "Badlands" Booker, Crazy Legs Conti and Patrick Bertoletti — all regulars every July 4.

Janus was eventually inducted into the Major League Eating Hall of Fame.

"I tell people that I learned a lot about life by eating hot dogs, and I mean it," Janus said upon his induction. "If you care about something and work hard at it, it makes you better."

Born in Simsbury on Dec. 31, 1976, Janus grew up in Connecticut before graduating from Southern Methodist University with a degree in political science and public policy. He later spent much of his adult life in New York City's East Village.

Janus' interests and pursuits extended well beyond competitive eating.

He traveled to Australia, where he tracked crocodiles and snakes in the wild, and at other points milked a cow and appeared as a television weatherman on an evening news broadcast.

He was also an accomplished whistler whose repertoire included the Hartford Whalers fight song, which he considered the best team song.

Janus also competed on several television game shows.

He became the largest winner in the history of "Cash Cab," appeared on "The Amazing Race" with Chestnut, and was a winning contestant on "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?"

He was later accepted into the U.S. Foreign Service and received an assignment, but his illness prevented him from beginning the overseas chapter he had planned.

Crazy Legs Conti, Janus' former roommate and a fellow competitive eater, remembered him as someone who pursued his interests without worrying about convention.

"Tim followed his own passions and dreams without regard for the pressures or expectations of society," Conti said. "He was unique, brilliant, and beloved by his friends. He lived his life on his own terms."

Janus is survived by his mother, Lucinda Hannon of Kentucky; his father and stepmother, Peter and Nancy Janus of Connecticut; and his sister, Tess McNair of Kentucky.

A celebration of Janus' life is planned for October in New York City.

For more information on 'Eater X,' click on this link.

To see 'Eater X' compete at the 2013 Hot Dog Eating Contest, see below: