Nightlife athletes raise Hong Kong’s sporting bar with beer triathlon

You don’t need to be athletic to take part in the newest triathlon on Hong Kong’s sporting calendar. Good hand-eye coordination and an appetite for drink are assets, though, at Arena Bar by Zerve’s beer triathlon, in which beer pong, flip cup and darts replaced swimming, running and cycling.

A lively crowd gathered for the inaugural event last week, and quickly got into the spirit, starting with rowdy games of rock-paper-scissors as the Tsim Sha Tsui bar’s biggest beer pong table was being set up.

Jason Chan, a director or Arena, hopes the triathlon will become a regular event. “We’re trying to do something new, rather than just having a beer pong or darts tournament like other bars do,” he said, straining to be heard above the din. “This is our first year so it depends on the feedback. If it’s good, maybe we will do it once or even twice a year.”

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Arena, on the strip of bars and restaurants that line Knutsford Terrace, is the younger sister of Zerve Bar & Billiards in Yiu Wa Street, Causeway Bay. The bars’ American-style sports and gaming concept is targeted at groups of friends looking for a night of lively entertainment without going clubbing.

After wetting their whistles, participants paired up for the triathlon, and the first two teams kicked off with beer pong. Competitors take turns to launch a ball across the table into one of their rival’s six half-filled cups. Team A, adopting a serious tone, were a dab hand, landing their first two balls squarely on target, eliciting cheers and high fives. Team B appeared more relaxed, but it was all bluff, and ping pong balls clattered randomly across the floor. Once all 12 balls had been thrown, Team A, who landed the most balls in cups, were the winner and earned their first point. Any beer cup without a ball in it had to be emptied.

The competitors then moved on to cup flip, taking turns to flick a cup, its lip over the edge of the table, to land it upright. The first team to flip both cups upright wins, and Team A’s stern focus quickly earned them a second point.

As the beer pong table was taken over by the next two teams, A and B were ushered over to the electronic dart boards. Each team had three darts, and the highest scoring team, Team A again, grabbed the third and final point, sending them through to the next round. The losing team pay the bar tab.