Krystal Square Off VI Opening Ceremonies Photo Gallery

No. 2 ranked competitive eater in the world Patrick "Deep Dish" Bertoletti lit the grill to kick off the Krystal Square Off VI Opening Ceremonies yesterday

To kick off the Krystal Square Off VI Qualifying Tour and the festivities in Chattanooga this weekend for the first stop on the tour, competitive eater Pat Bertoletti joined with George Shea and Krystal’s Brad Wahl for a press conference announcing the new Krystal Square Off rules and unveiling Blitz energy drink as the official sponsor of KSO VI. He then lit the grill to kick off the popular Running of the Grill down to the Chattanooga Riverfront as crowds waved and cheered from the roadside.

Check out the photos below:

Patrick Bertoletti Headlines Krystal Square Off VI Opening Ceremony

Last year, Humble Bob Shoudt (above) lit the Krystal Square Off Grill. This year Patrick "Deep Dish" Bertoletti will have the honor.

Many have called the Krystal Square Off the “Super Bowl of Competitive Eating” but we like to think of it more like the Olympics around here, with the very best gustatory athletes from around the world descending on the South and competing in qualifiers for a spot in the gold-medal event, the Krystal Square Off VI World Hamburger Eating Championship in Chattanooga on Sept. 27.

And just like the Olympics, Krystal Square Off VI will kick off in grand fashion with the official KSO VI Opening Ceremony held on Friday, Aug. 21, a day ahead of the first 8-minute qualifying event in Chattanooga.

Here’s what you, the eaters and your fellow KSO VI fans can expect to see and experience during the Opening Ceremony next Friday:

• 1:00 p.m. – Lighting and Running of the Krystal Square Off Grill (Krystal Headquarters at 1 Union Square) – The official Krystal Square Off Grill will be lit on the steps of The Krystal Company headquarters to signify the beginning of this year’s Krystal Square Off. From there, a processional of Krystal employees, Chattanooga residents and honorary Grand Marshal Patrick “Deep Dish” Bertoletti will lead the running of the ceremonial grill through the streets of downtown to the Chattanooga Riverfront, the location of the kick-off event and home of the Krystal Square Off VI World Hamburger Eating Championship on September 27. All Chattanoogans are invited to join the running of the Krystal Square Off Grill.

• 2:00 p.m. - Media Square Off (Chattanooga Riverfront) – A Media Square Off will take place during the Opening Ceremony with some of Chattanooga’s most recognizable news personalities putting their money where there mouth is as they compete in a two-minute hamburger eating contest, featuring the two new rules:  Big Angus Burger Points and a new no-dunking rule.

• 2:20 p.m. - Eating Exhibition by Pat Bertoletti (Chattanooga Riverfront) -  Patrick “Deep Dish” Bertoletti, the number two-ranked competitive eater in the world and the runner-up at last year’s Krystal Square Off V (with 85 Krystal burgers in eight minutes), will show off his new eating strategy as he tackles both the famous Krystal hamburger and Krystal’s new Big Angus Burgers while adhering to the challenging, new “No Dunking” rule.

So mark your calendars now and be a part of this year’s Opening Ceremony festivities.

Follow the Krystal Square Off on Twitter here.

Photos From Krystal Square Off V Opening Ceremony Now On Flickr

Photos from the Opening Ceremony for the Krystal Square Off V World Hamburger Eating Championship are now posted on this site and our Flickr page. You can view them here (or slideshow here), or you can always click on the Flickr logo located in the far right column of this page.

The Opening Ceremony got underway yesterday on the footsteps of the Krystal Building in downtown Chattanooga, with Krystal’s Brad Wahl and George Shea of Major League Eating making introductory marks to kick things off. Shea then introduced competitive eating pro “Humble” Bob Shoudt, who tried on the World Championship belt for the audience (a jinx?) and then lit the ceremonial Krystal Square Off Grill.

With media outlets from across the Chattanooga area on hand to capture the Olympic-like spectacle, the Grill was paraded down Chestnut Street to the Riverfront, site of the World Championship on Sept. 28. The ceremony finally drew to a close with the Celebrity/Media Square Off, which was won by WDEF’s noon anchor Joe Legge. Read about that contest here.

Today’s action gets underway at 3:00 pm EST. Anyone interested in being one of the 5 random contestants selected right before the contest begins should register on site by 2:00 pm. Stay tuned to our Twitter feed and to this blog for all the latest from the Chattanooga Qualifier today.

Move Over Olympics, The Krystal Square Off V Opening Ceremony Is Here

Like the Opening Ceremony at the Olympics in Beijing, but without the fake fireworks, Birds Nest-looking stadium and thousands of green-glowing acrobats wearing adult diapers, Krystal will host the Opening Ceremony for the Krystal Square Off V World Hamburger Eating Championship this Friday in downtown Chattanooga.

The festivities will begin at 1:00 pm EST in spectacular style with the official lighting of the Krystal Square Off Grill on the steps of The Krystal Company headquarters, located directly across from the Sheraton Reed House Hotel. This will signify the beginning of this year’s Krystal Square Off Qualifying Tour and will be followed by the first ever “Running of the Grill” down Chestnut Street, complete with a police escort, parade of vehicles with local dignitaries, the Krystal cycling team on bikes and a host of Krystal employees.

The event is open to the public and all Chattanoogans are encouraged to come down and join the parade.

The procession will then end down at the Chattanooga Riverfront, site of the Chattanooga Qualifier and the World Hamburger Eating Championship. At 2:00 pm, Krystal’s VP of Marketing Brad Wahl and George Shea from Major League Eating will host a press conference to set the stage for this year’s contest, and immediately afterwards, Chattanooga’s most popular news personalities will square off for major bragging rights in a 2-minute Krystal burger bout.

Among those competing Friday will be Don Welch from WTVC, Mark Bruce from WRCB, Joe Legge from WDEF (check out his blog here), Jason Law from WDEF and Webb Wright from WDEF.

Of course, we’ll be covering the entire event here at KrystalSquareOff.com–snapping photos, shooting video, and Twittering away–so be sure to check back here for a recap and sign up for our Twitter feed so you can follow the action as it happens.