Larry Bird was as fierce as they come. Both on and off the court, the Boston Celtics legend was a great competitor, going all the way to beat rivals, even in meaningless tasks.
Charles Barkley learned this lesson the hard way, finding out how hard it was to beat Bird drinking beer. Chuck was never afraid of any challenge, but things changed for the Philadelphia 76ers, Phoenix Suns legend once he drank beer with Larry.
Back in 1992, when Team USA reunited a plethora of stars to play in that year’s Summer Olympics, Barkley had the chance to share touches (and more things) with big legends like Magic Johnson and Bird. After winning the Tournament of the Americas, the team traveled to Monte Carlo for a little training camp.
That’s when Chuck learned that Larry was no joke when it came to beer. The iconic No. 33 showed his tolerance, which led Chuck to try to keep up with him without any success. That was a mistake for Barkley, who was hungover for a couple of days after the extempore competition ended.
“One thing you don’t wanna do is drink beer with Larry Bird. He drinks Budweiser, but Budweiser is the strongest beer in the world. And my head hurt for like two days,” Chuck said, via Sports Casting.
It seems like Chuck was schooled by the small forward. Larry Legend was an avid fan of beer, as you can see in his iconic picture drinking beer on the floor while Michael Jordan plays ping pong.
Contrary to what Chuck believed, Budweiser isn’t the strongest beer in the world. It just happened that he wanted to compete against Bird, who had a high tolerance, while he couldn’t keep the pace.
Charles developed significant friendships during that summer in Europe. Team USA had a walk to the gold medal in the Barcelona Olympics, dominating every single rival on the way to the win. Barkley recorded 18.0 points per game (team-best) 4.1 rebounds, 2.4 assists and an unforgettable two-day hangover against Larry Bird.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IraymSUdK0M
