Athletes Scarf Down Doughnuts in Contest

With a fervor not often, or ever, seen in the campus dining halls, Harvard student athletes scarfed down boxes upon boxes of Krispy Kreme doughnuts last night at Athletes in Action (AIA)’s third annual Krispy Kreme Eating Competition.

“It started the first year with a taco-eating competition, but that got pretty gross,” said Aaron C. M. Barth ’04, a coordinator for AIA.

AIA is a division of Harvard Christian Impact that works to provide a spiritual community for athletes on campus.

The competition, held in a bustling Quincy Junior Common Room, was open to all varsity, junior varsity, and club athletes and involved eating a full box of doughnuts in the shortest possible time.

Men and women competed in separate divisions to consume the 80 dozen doughnuts ordered for last night’s event. Each male athlete ate a full box alone. Women competed in three-person relay teams, with each female athlete consuming four doughnuts.

As Michael P. Jones ’07, a wide receiver for Harvard’s football team and main coordinator of the event, began to munch, DJ Trent J. Hudson ’05 played classic sports fight songs such as “Eye of the Tiger” and “We Will Rock You” over the cheers of supportive teammates and friends.

Ryan P. Lannon ’05, a member of the ice hockey team, said he was uneasy before the competition.

“I don’t even like doughnuts that much. I just don’t want to throw up,” he said.

But he seemed quite relaxed, chomping slowly and even answering his cell phone mid-race with a gaping mouthful of doughnut, while his competitors donned Krispy Kreme hats and frantically poured water from gallon jugs as they chewed.

Football offensive linebacker and rookie doughnut-eating competitor Adam T. Kulczycky ’06 finished his doughnuts first, clocking in at 3:13. But he was still hungry.

“I want another box,” he said after winning a Krispy Kreme King t-shirt.

After Kulczycky’s victory, Ambar Paranjape, Harvard’s varsity strength and conditioning coach, spoke about Christianity and athletics.

Following his speech, it was the female athletes’ turn to devour doughnuts. The women’s water polo team, eager to vindicate a last place finish the year before, attended a stomach stretching dinner earlier that evening. Upon a third place finish, the team cheered, “We didn’t come in last this year!”

The victors, the women’s heavyweight crew relay team, polished off the doughnuts in five minutes and 24 seconds. The winning team anchor, Danielle Thiriot ’07, reflected, “If that were my 2K time, I would be thrilled.”