Combat de Muay Thaï © venusvi - Shutterstock.com.jpg
Cérémonie de respect, boxe thaï © Alexey Volkov - shutterstock.com.jpg

From Khmer martial arts to Muay Thai

The first written accounts of Thai boxing date back to stories in the royal chronicles of the Kingdom of Ayutthaya during the reign of Rama I. According to legends transmitted orally, Muay Thai would find its origin in Khmer martial arts, such as Pradal Seray (martial art practiced with bare hands at the time), and ancient martial arts from the different provinces of today's Thailand. It would then have evolved into Muay Boran ("ancient boxing"), which was also practiced with bare hands, to finally be codified in the 16th century to become Muay Thai as we know it today. It was at this time that it began to be practiced by soldiers for military purposes. It was the hand-to-hand combat technique of choice for chiefs and warriors. In the 18th century, the practice gained in popularity and fights were regularly organized in villages. Boxers used various natural and unnatural materials to cover their fists. The practice of Muay Thai became more and more a spectacle and was abandoned by the military with the modernization of weapons. The practice was even outright banned in 1921, because it was considered too dangerous and lethal! Before that date, these warriors sometimes had their fists surrounded by strips soaked in resin on which they stuck crushed glass. The dead were numerous, which hardly ever happens nowadays. Thai boxing returns in 1930 with rules inspired by English boxing: fighting in a ring, wearing boxing gloves, prohibition of certain blows ...)

Philosophy, dance and music

Muay Thai conveys strong values and combines the foundations of the country: respect for the king and the royal family, allegiance to Buddhism and the patriotic spirit.

The boxer wears a sacred headband around his head, the mongkon, to protect him from bad blows and another headband containing a Buddha amulet around one arm, the praciat or kruang-rang. Such precautions are not useless. Moreover it is not rare to see champions of Muay Thai who are Buddhist monks! The control of emotions is an important part of the training, which is both physical and mental. The fights begin with an immutable ceremony. Before fighting, the boxer prays with his trainer(wai kru). He then begins a "dance of the spirits" that lasts several minutes (Ram Muay). A dance full of cabalistic gestures intended to frighten the spirits of the place and the opponent. The movements of Ram Muay are performed slowly and circularly, they also serve as mental preparation. The Ram Muay always starts on your knees and ends standing. A good dancer, even if he loses, will be respected if his Ram Muay is well executed. The fight is accompanied by music which is the accompaniment from meditation to the rhythm of the assaults during the fight. The orchestra consists of three or four musicians, playing the Javanese flute (Pi Chawa), cymbals (Ching), and the long drum (Klawng Khaek). The rhythm and the volume of sound will follow the action of the fight, they have a stimulating effect on the boxers and the audience.

Surprising techniques

The Marquis of Queensbury, who set the rules of the noble art of boxing, would tear his hair out by the handles if he attended a Thai boxing match. The techniques used are varied: striking techniques (fist, foot, elbow, knee...), dodging, blocking and grabbing techniques, as well as throwing and mowing techniques. Each three-minute round is interrupted by a two-minute break. The boxers are barefoot (the horn is hard and hurts) and it is not uncommon to see a knockout on a kick. The elbows are used as hammers and try to hit the face; the knees, serving as a ram, are in principle reserved for the stomach, liver and solar plexus. Judo holds are not accepted, but one can throw one's opponent to the ground or mow him down.

Where to practice?

To practice and learn the art of this national sport, training camps are scattered throughout the kingdom. They are open to everyone from the age of 7.

There are usually no less than 8 fights per evening, the most awaited is usually the 5th, when the show, which started at 9pm, reaches its climax. The most important fights are broadcasted on national channels on Saturday and Sunday. The international notoriety of Thai boxing owes much to the evolution of tourism in the country which has given it a showcase around the world. Since then, the practice of this sport is present all over the world, including in France. Kick-boxing, created by the Japanese Kenji Kurosaki at the end of the 1960s, is a derivative of Thai boxing. In France, the Académie française de Muay Thai (AFMT) and the Fédération française de kick-boxing, muay thai et disciplines associées (FFKMDA), the two most important official federations, have many practicing affiliates. The two mythical Muay Thai stadiums are in Bangkok: the Lumpinee Boxing Stadium and the Rajadamnern Boxing Stadium. They are the world reference of this sport. Each city has several Thai boxing stadiums, from the smallest to the largest. You will be able to attend evenings of fights all over the country: Bangkok of course, but also Pattaya, Phuket, Koh Samui, Chiang Mai... The price of entry to the fights varies according to the place, of course, but also according to the quality of the champions. Count between 1 500 and 2 000 B for a place near the ring.