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The martial art of Muay Thai (Thai Boxing) is one of the most popular spectator sports in Thailand, and is gaining world renown.
The exciting world of Muay Thai is a martial art, like no other, and is a proud heritage of a nation. The history of Muay Thai is interwoven with the
history of the Thai people. The Thai people are gentle and peace-loving but for centuries they had to defend themselves and their land from aggressive powers.
The martial art developed from a form of close hand to hand combat, which was appropriate to the rough terrains of the battlefields.
King Naresuan the Great (1555-1605), a celebrated warrior-hero, made Muay Thai a required part of military training.
One of Muay Thai's historic heroes was Nai Khanom Tom, who beat ten Burmese boxers in a row in 1774 under the audience of a Burmese king, after the Thai capital fell in 1767; he
won his freedom and became a Thai legend.
In these early days, Muay Thai was a dangerous sport, with no safety gear of any kind for the fighters, and boxers would wrap their fists in thick horsehide trimmed with cotton soaked in glue and broken glass for maximum impact with minimum knuckle damage.
Since then many changes have been initiated to make the sport safer, but is still a violent contact sport and considered by many as the ultimate in unarmed combat.
Nowadays there are many Muay Thai training establishments across the country, and boys as young as eight years old attend.
Their ultimate dream is to fight at the famous Lumpini or Ratchadamnoen stadiums in Bangkok.
In 1997, the Muay Thai Institute was founded and is now the only training school accredited by the Ministry of Education.
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During a visit to a Muay Thai fight, you will witness a pure spectacle of the passion and drama of one of Thailand's historic sports. On one side of the ring is a musical band section, comprising a Javanese clarinet, drums and cymbals.
The music accompanies the fight from beginning to end. The tempo rises according to the action inside the ring, even though the musicians have seen just about anything and everything before.
The betting is frenzied.
You will witness lethal kicks and artful feints, powerful grappling, furious punches, and crushing elbow strikes - all executed to loud cheers from the crowd and the heart-racing tune of the accompanying wind-and-percussion ensemble.
The training of a Thai boxer and particularly the relationship between the boxer and teacher is very symbolic. As the boxers enter the ring, they perform a special pre-fight dance ( ram muay ).
The dance starts with "wai khru "
when each boxer kneels and bows three times, to show respect for his teacher. During the dance, they wear a headband ( mongkhol ) given by their trainer. It is a sacred talisman earned after
many years of dedication to the art. The headband is believed to bestow luck to the wearer since it has been blessed by a monk or the boxer’s own teacher. Since Buddhism and the teacher play important roles in the life of Thais, the headband
is both a lucky charm and a spiritual object. It will be removed after
the wai khru dance, and only by the boxer’s trainer. Armbands, are also worn, and they are believed to offer protection and are only removed when the fight has ended.
With the ceremonies complete, the fight begins. And a ringside seat is highly recommended.
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