Как правильно пишется муай тай

Not to be confused with Mai Tai.

Muay Thai (Thai: มวยไทย, RTGS: muai thai, pronounced [mūa̯j tʰāj] (listen)), sometimes referred to as Thai boxing, is a combat sport that uses stand-up striking along with various clinching techniques.^[1] This discipline is known as the «art of eight limbs», as it is characterised by the combined use of fists, elbows, knees and shins.^[2] Muay Thai became widespread internationally in the late 20th to 21st century, when Westernised practitioners from Thailand began competing in kickboxing and mixed-rules matches as well as matches under muay Thai rules around the world. The professional league is governed by The Professional Boxing Association of Thailand (P.A.T), sanctioned by The Sports Authority of Thailand (S.A.T.).

Muay Thai is related to other martial art styles such as musti-yuddha, Adimurai, muay Chaiya, muay boran, muay Lao, lethwei and tomoi.^[3] A practitioner of muay Thai is known as a nak muay. Western practitioners in Thailand are sometimes called nak muay farang, meaning «foreign boxer».^[4]

History[edit]

The history of muay Thai can be traced at least to the 16th century as a peace-time martial art practised by the soldiers of King Naresuan.^[5] An exhibition of muay Thai was observed and reported by Simon de la Loubère, a French diplomat who was sent by King Louis XIV to the Kingdom of Siam in 1687, in his famous work and the Ayutthaya Kingdom Burmese–Siamese War (1765–1767)^[6] Muay boran, and therefore muay Thai, was originally called by more generic names such as toi muay or simply muay. As well as being a practical fighting technique for use in actual warfare, muay became a sport in which the opponents fought in front of spectators who went to watch for entertainment. These muay contests gradually became an integral part of local festivals and celebrations, especially those held at temples. Eventually, the previously bare-fisted fighters started wearing lengths of hemp rope around their hands and forearms. This type of match was called muay khat chueak (มวยคาดเชือก)

19th century[edit]

The ascension of King Chulalongkorn (Rama V) to the throne in 1868 ushered in a golden age not only for muay but for the whole country of Thailand. Muay progressed greatly during the reign of Rama V as a direct result of the king’s personal interest in the sport. The country was at peace and muay functioned as a means of physical exercise, self-defense, attacking, recreation and personal advancement.^[7]

The modern era[edit]

1909-1910: King Chulalongkorn formalized muay boran («ancient boxing») by awarding (in 1910) three muen to victors at the funeral fights for his son (in 1909). The region style: Lopburi, Korat and Chaiya.^[7]

1913: British boxing was introduced into the curriculum of the Suan Kulap College. The first descriptive use of the term «muay Thai».

1919: British boxing and muay Thai were taught as one sport in the curriculum of the Suan Kulap College. Judo was also offered.

1921: First permanent ring in Siam at Suan Kulap College. Used for both muay and British boxing.

1923: Suan Sanuk Stadium. First international style three-rope ring with red and blue padded corners, near Lumpinee Park. Muay and British boxing.^[8]

King Rama VII (r. 1925–1935) pushed for codified rules for muay and they were put into place. Thailand’s first boxing ring was built in 1921 at Suan Kulap. Referees were introduced and rounds were now timed by kick. Fighters at the Lumpinee Boxing Stadium began wearing modern gloves, as well as hard groin protectors, during training and in boxing matches against foreigners. Traditional rope-binding (khat chueak) made the hands a hardened, dangerous striking tool. The use of knots in the rope over the knuckles made the strikes more abrasive and damaging for the opponent while protecting the hands of the fighter.^[9] This rope-binding was still used in fights between Thais but after a death in the ring, it was decided that fighters should wear gloves and cotton coverlets over the feet and ankles. It was also around this time that the term «muay Thai» became commonly used, while the older form of the style came to be known as «muay boran», which is now performed primarily as an exhibition art form.

Muay Thai was at the height of its popularity in the 1980s and 1990s. Top fighters commanded purses of up to 200,000 baht and the stadia where gambling was legal drew big gates and big advertising revenues. In 2016, a payout to a superstar fighter was about 100,000 baht per fight,^[10] but can range as high as 540,000 baht for a bout.^[11]

In 1993, the International Federation of Muaythai Amateur, or IFMA was inaugurated. It became the governing body of amateur muay Thai consisting of 128 member countries worldwide and is recognised by the Olympic Council of Asia.

In 1995, the World Muaythai Council, the oldest and largest professional sanctioning organisations of muay Thai, was established by the Thai government and sanctioned by the Sports Authority of Thailand.

In 1995, the World Muay Thai Federation was founded by the merger of two existing organisations, and established in Bangkok, becoming the federation governing international muay Thai. In August 2012, it had over 70 member countries. Its president is elected at the World Muay Thai Congress.

In 2006, muay Thai was included in SportAccord with IFMA. One of the requirements of SportAccord was that no sport can have a name of a country in its name. As a result, an amendment was made in the IFMA constitution to change the name of the sport from «muay Thai» to «muaythai» —written as one word in accordance with Olympic requirements.

In 2014, muay Thai was included in the International World Games Association (IWGA) and was represented in the official programme of The World Games 2017 in Wrocław, Poland.

In January 2015, muay Thai was granted the patronage of the International University Sports Federation (FISU) and, from 16 to 23 March 2015, the first University World Muaythai Cup was held in Bangkok.

In 2020, there are more than 3,800 Thai boxing gyms overseas.^[12]

Rules[edit]

According to IFMA rules and regulations, Muay Thai is a martial art that uses every part of the body’s limbs, therefore allowing for strikes including the fists, legs, knees and elbows.

Generally, for a strike to count towards the point score, it has to hit without being blocked or guarded against by the opponent. Strikes also do not score if they hit the opponent’s glove, forearm, foot, or shin. Strikes to the groin are against the rules and if found to be intentional are counted as fouls.^[13]

If both Muay Thai fighters have the same score at the end of the round, the winner is determined by which fighter has the more powerful strike.

Olympics[edit]

Timeline of International Federation of Muaythai Associations (IFMA) from founding to International Olympic Committee (IOC) recognition:^[14]

• 1992 – National Federation of Muaythai Associations founded.
• 1995 – International Amateur Muay Thai Federation (IAMTF) founded.
• 2012 – Official request for International Olympic Committee (IOC) recognition launched.
• 2016 – First endorsement received.
• 2017 – Muaythai is included in the World Games.
• 2021 – On June 10, the IOC Board of Directors agreed on the full endorsement of IFMA at the 138th IOC General Assembly in Tokyo.
• 2021 – On July 20, the IOC General Assembly granted full recognition to the International Federation of Muaythai Associations (IFMA) and Muaythai.
• 2023 — On January 11, USA MuayThai has been officially approved by The United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee (USOPC) and was recognized by the organization’s committee as the newest member with a chance to build on the 2028 Olympic in the United States.
• 2023 — The European Olympic Committees (EOC) had officially announced the inclusion of Muay Thai, or Thai-style boxing, at the 2023 European Games to be held in Krakow, Poland.

Traditional wear[edit]

The mongkhon, or mongkol (headband), and pra jiad (armbands) are often worn into the ring before the match begins. They originated when Siam was in a constant state of war. Young men would tear off pieces of a loved one’s clothing (often a mother’s sarong) and wear it in battle for good luck as well as to ward off harmful spirits. In modern times, the mongkol (lit. «holy spirit», «luck», «protection») is worn as a tribute to the fighter’s gym. The mongkol is traditionally presented by a trainer to the fighter when he judges that the fighter is ready to represent the gym in the ring. Often, after the fighter has finished the wai kru, the trainer will take the mongkol off his head and place it in his corner of the ring for luck. They were also used for protection. Whether the fighter is a Buddhist or not, it is common for them to bring the mongkol to a Buddhist monk who blesses it for good luck prior to stepping into the ring.

Techniques[edit]

Formal muay Thai techniques are divided into two groups: mae mai (แม่ไม้), or «major techniques», and luk mai (ลูกไม้), or «minor techniques». Muay Thai is often a fighting art of attrition, where opponents exchange blows with one another.^[15] This is certainly the case with traditional stylists in Thailand, but is a less popular form of fighting in the contemporary world fighting circuit where the Thai style of exchanging blow for blow is no longer favorable. Almost all techniques in muay Thai use the entire body movement, rotating the hip with each kick, punch, elbow and block.

Punching (Chok)[edit]

English	Thai	Romanization	IPA
Jab	หมัดหน้า/หมัดแย็บ	Mat na/Mat yaep	[màt nâ]
Cross/Straight	หมัดตรง	Mat trong	[màt troŋ]
Hook/Swing	หมัดเหวี่ยงสั้น	Mat tawad/mat wiang san	[màt wìəŋ sân]
Overhand/Haymaker	หมัดเหวี่ยงยาว	Mat khork/mat wiang yao	[màt wìəŋ jaːw]
Backfist/Spinning Backfist	หมัดเหวี่ยงกลับ	Mat wiang klap/Mat clap lang/Kwang jag narai	[màt wìəŋ klàp]
Uppercut	หมัดเสย/หมัดสอยดาว	Mat soei/Mat ngat	[màt sɤ̌j], [màt sɔ̌j daːw]
Superman punch/Cobra punch	กระโดดชก	Kradot chok	[kradòːt tɕʰók]

The punch techniques in muay Thai were originally quite limited, being crosses and a long (or lazy) circular strike made with a straight (but not locked) arm and landing with the heel of the palm. Cross-fertilisation with Western boxing and Western martial arts mean the full range of western boxing punches are now used: lead jab, straight/cross, hook, uppercut, shovel and corkscrew punches and overhands, as well as hammer fists and back fists.

As a tactic, body punching is used less in muay Thai than most other striking combat sports to avoid exposing the attacker’s head to counter strikes from knees or elbows. To utilize the range of targeting points, in keeping with the centre line theory, the fighter can use either the Western or Thai stance which allows for either long range or short range attacks to be undertaken effectively without compromising guard.

Elbow (Sok)[edit]

The elbow can be used in several ways as a striking weapon: horizontal, diagonal-upwards, diagonal-downwards, uppercut, downward, backward-spinning,and flying. From the side, it can be used as either a finishing move or as a way to cut the opponent’s eyebrow so that blood might block his vision. The diagonal elbows are faster than the other forms but are less powerful. The elbow strike is considered the most dangerous form of attack in the sport.

English	Thai	Romanization	IPA
Elbow slash	ศอกตี (ศอกสับ)	Sok ti	[sɔ̀ːk tiː]
Horizontal elbow	ศอกตัด	Sok tat	[sɔ̀ːk tàt]
Uppercut elbow	ศอกงัด	Sok ngat	[sɔ̀ːk ŋát]
Forward elbow thrust	ศอกพุ่ง	Sok phung	[sɔ̀ːk pʰûŋ]
Reverse horizontal elbow	ศอกเหวี่ยงกลับ (ศอกกระทุ้ง)	Sok wiang klap	[sɔ̀ːk wìəŋ klàp]
Spinning elbow	ศอกกลับ	Sok klap	[sɔ̀ːk klàp]
Double elbow chop	ศอกกลับคู่	Sok klap khu	[sɔ̀ːk klàp kʰûː]
Mid-air elbow strike/Jump elbow chop	กระโดดศอก	Kradot sok	[kradòːt sɔ̀ːk]

There is a distinct difference between a single elbow and a follow-up elbow. The single elbow is a move independent from any other, whereas a follow-up elbow is the second strike from the same arm, being a hook or straight punch first with an elbow follow-up. Such elbows, and most other elbow strikes, are used when the distance between fighters becomes too small and there is too little space to throw a hook at the opponent’s head.

Elbows can be used to great effect as blocks or defences against, for example, spring knees, side body knees, body kicks or punches. When well connected, an elbow strike can cause serious damage to the opponent, including cuts or even a knockout.

Kicking (Te)[edit]

English	Thai	Romanization	IPA
Straight kick	เตะตรง	Te trong	[tèʔ troŋ]
Roundhouse kick	เตะตัด	Te tat	[tèʔ tàt]
Diagonal kick	เตะเฉียง	Te chiang	[tèʔ tɕʰǐəŋ]
Half-shin, half-knee kick	เตะครึ่งแข้งครึ่งเข่า	Te khrueng khaeng khrueng khao	[tèʔ kʰrɯ̂ŋ kʰɛ̂ŋ kʰrɯ̂ŋ kʰàw]
Reverse roundhouse kick	เตะกลับหลัง	Te klap lang/Jorakhe faad hang	[tèʔ klàp lǎŋ]
Down roundhouse kick	เตะกด	Te kot	[tèʔ kòt]
Axe heel kick	เตะเข่า	Te khao	[tèʔ kʰàw]
Jump kick	กระโดดเตะ	Kradot te	[kradòːt tèʔ]
Step-up kick	เขยิบเตะ	Khayoep te/yiep te	[kʰa.jɤ̀p tèʔ]

The two most common kicks^[16] in muay Thai are known as the thip (literally «foot jab») and the te chiang (kicking upwards in the shape of a triangle cutting under the arm and ribs), or roundhouse kick. The Thai roundhouse kick uses a rotational movement of the entire body and has been widely adopted by practitioners of other combat sports. It is done from a circular stance with the back leg just a little ways back (roughly shoulder width apart) in comparison to instinctive upper body fighting (boxing) where the legs must create a wider base. The roundhouse kick draws its power almost entirely from the rotational movement of the hips, counter-rotation of the shoulders and arms are also often used to add torque to the lower body and increase the power of the kick as well.^[17]

If a roundhouse kick is attempted by the opponent, the Thai boxer will normally check the kick, that is, he will block the kick with the outside of his lower leg. Thai boxers are trained to always connect with the shin. The foot contains many fine bones and is much weaker. A fighter may end up hurting himself if he tries to strike with his foot or instep. Shins are trained by repeatedly striking firm objects, such as pads or heavy bags.

Knee (Ti Khao)^[18][edit]

English	Thai	Romanization	IPA
Straight knee strike	เข่าตรง	Khao trong	[kʰàw troŋ]
Diagonal knee strike	เข่าเฉียง	Khao chiang	[kʰàw tɕʰǐəŋ]
Curving knee strike	เข่าโค้ง	Khao khong	[kʰàw kʰóːŋ]
Horizontal knee strike	เข่าตัด	Khao tat	[kʰàw tàt]
Knee slap	เข่าตบ	Khao ti/khao top	[kʰàw tòp]
Knee bomb	เข่ายาว	Khao yao	[kʰàw jaːw]
Flying knee	เข่าลอย	Khao loi	[kʰàw lɔːj]
Step-up knee strike	เข่าเหยียบ	Khao yiap	[kʰàw jìəp]

• Khao dot [kʰàw dòːt] (Jumping knee strike) – the boxer jumps up on one leg and strikes with that leg’s knee.
• Khao loi (Flying knee strike) – the boxer takes a step(s), jumps forward and off one leg and strikes with that leg’s knee.
• Khao thon [kʰàw tʰoːn] (Straight knee strike) – the boxer simply thrusts it forward but not upwards, unless he is holding an opponent’s head down in a clinch and intend to knee upwards into the face. According to one written source, this technique is somewhat more recent than khao dot or khao loi.^{[citation needed]} Supposedly, when the Thai boxers fought with rope-bound hands rather than the modern boxing gloves, this particular technique was subject to potentially vicious cutting, slicing and sawing by an alert opponent who would block it or deflect it with the sharp «rope-glove» edges which are sometimes dipped in water to make the rope much stronger. This explanation also holds true for some of the following knee strikes below as well.

Foot-thrust (Teep)[edit]

The foot-thrust, or literally, «foot jab», is one of the techniques in muay Thai. It is mainly used as a defensive technique to control distance or block attacks. Foot-thrusts should be thrown quickly but with enough force to knock an opponent off balance.

English	Thai	Romanization	IPA
Straight foot-thrust	ถีบตรง	Thip trong	[tʰìːp troŋ]
Sideways foot-thrust	ถีบข้าง	Thip khang	[tʰìːp kʰâːŋ]
Reverse foot-thrust	ถีบกลับหลัง	Thip klap lang	[tʰìːp klàp lǎŋ]
Slapping foot-thrust	ถีบตบ	Thip top	[tʰìːp tòp]
Jumping foot-thrust	กระโดดถีบ	Kradot thip	[kradòːt tʰìːp]

Clinch and neck wrestling (Chap kho)[edit]

In Western boxing, the two fighters are separated when they clinch; in muay Thai, however, they are not. It is often in the clinch that knee and elbow techniques are used. To strike and bind the opponent for both offensive and defensive purposes, small amounts of stand-up grappling are used in the clinch. The front clinch should be performed with the palm of one hand on the back of the other. There are three reasons why the fingers must not be intertwined. 1) In the ring fighters are wearing boxing gloves and cannot intertwine their fingers. 2) The Thai front clinch involves pressing the head of the opponent downwards, which is easier if the hands are locked behind the back of the head instead of behind the neck. Furthermore, the arms should be putting as much pressure on the neck as possible. 3) A fighter may incur an injury to one or more fingers if they are intertwined, and it becomes more difficult to release the grip in order to quickly elbow the opponent’s head.

A correct clinch also involves the fighter’s forearms pressing against the opponent’s collar bone while the hands are around the opponent’s head rather than the opponent’s neck. The general way to get out of a clinch is to push the opponent’s head backward or elbow them, as the clinch requires both participants to be very close to one another. Additionally, the non-dominant clincher can try to «swim» their arm underneath and inside the opponent’s clinch, establishing the previously non-dominant clincher as the dominant clincher.

Muay Thai has several other variants of the clinch or chap kho [tɕàp kʰɔː], including:

• Arm clinch: One or both hands controls the inside of the defender’s arm(s) and where the second hand if free is in the front clinch position. This clinch is used to briefly control the opponent before applying a knee strike or throw.
• Side clinch: One arm passes around the front of the defender with the attacker’s shoulder pressed into the defender’s arm pit and the other arm passing round the back which allows the attacker to apply knee strikes to the defender’s back or to throw the defender readily.
• Low clinch: Both controlling arms pass under the defender’s arms, which is generally used by the shorter of two opponents.
• Swan-neck: One hand around the rear of the neck is used to briefly clinch an opponent before a strike.^{[citation needed]}

Defence against attacks[edit]

Defences in muay Thai are categorised in six groups:

• Blocking – defender’s hard blocks to stop a strike in its path so preventing it reaching its target (e.g. the shin block described in more detail below)
• Parry/Block – Parrying or blocking uses the kickboxer’s hands as defensive tools to deflect incoming attacks. As the opponent’s punch arrives, the boxer delivers a sharp, lateral, open-handed blow to the opponent’s wrist or forearm, redirecting the punch.
• Avoidance – moving a body part out of the way or range of a strike so the defender remains in range for a counter-strike. For example, the defender moves their front leg backward to avoid the attacker’s low kick, then immediately counters with a roundhouse kick. Or the defender might lay their head back from the attacker’s high roundhouse kick then counter-attack with a side kick.
• Evasion – moving the body out of the way or range of a strike so the defender has to move close again to counter-attack, e.g. defender jumping laterally or back from attacker’s kicks
• Disruption – Pre-empting an attack e.g. with defender using disruptive techniques like jab, foot-thrust or low roundhouse kick, generally called a «leg kick» (to the outside or inside of the attacker’s front leg, just above the knee) as the attacker attempts to close distance
• Anticipation – Defender catching a strike (e.g., catching a roundhouse kick to the body) or countering it before it lands (e.g., defender’s low kick to the supporting leg below as the attacker initiates a high roundhouse kick).

Defences in practice[edit]

Defensively, the concept of «wall of defence» is used, in which shoulders, arms and legs are used to hinder the attacker from successfully executing techniques. Blocking is a critical element in muay Thai and compounds the level of conditioning a successful practitioner must possess. Low and mid body roundhouse kicks are normally blocked with the upper portion of a raised shin (this block is known as a «check»). High body strikes are blocked ideally with the forearms and shoulder together, or if enough time is allowed for a parry, the glove (elusively), elbow, or shin will be used. Midsection roundhouse kicks can also be caught/trapped, allowing for a sweep or counter-attack to the remaining leg of the opponent. Punches are blocked with an ordinary boxing guard and techniques similar, if not identical, to basic boxing technique. A common means of blocking a punch is using the hand on the same side as the oncoming punch. For example, if an orthodox fighter throws a jab (being the left hand), the defender will make a slight tap to redirect the punch’s angle with the right hand. The deflection is always as small and precise as possible to avoid unnecessary energy expenditure and return the hand to the guard as quickly as possible. Hooks are often blocked with a motion sometimes described as «combing the hair», that is, raising the elbow forward and effectively shielding the head with the forearm, flexed biceps and shoulder. More advanced muay Thai blocks are usually in the form of counter-strikes, using the opponent’s weight (as they strike) to amplify the damage that the countering opponent can deliver. This requires impeccable timing and thus can generally only be learned by many repetitions.

Child boxers[edit]

In 2016, 9,998 children under the age of 15 were registered with Board of Boxing under the Sport Authority of Thailand, according to the Child Safety Promotion and Injury Prevention Research Centre (CSIP).^[19] Some estimates put the number of child boxers nationwide at between 200,000 and 300,000, some as young as four years old.^[20]

The Advanced Diagnostic Imaging Centre (AIMC) at Ramathibodi Hospital studied 300 child boxers aged under 15 with two to more than five years of experience, as well as 200 children who do not box. The findings show that child boxers not only sustain brain injuries, they also have a lower IQ, about 10 points lower than average levels. Moreover, IQ levels correlate with the length of their training.^[20][21] Beyond brain damage, the death of young fighters in the ring sometimes occurs.^[22]

Adisak Plitapolkarnpim, director of CSIP,^[23] was indirectly quoted (in 2016) as having said that muay Thai practitioners «younger than 15 years old are being urged to avoid ‘head contact’ to reduce the risk of brain injuries, while children aged under nine should be banned from the combat fight»; furthermore, the Boxing Act’s minimum age to compete professionally was largely being flouted; furthermore, quoted indirectly, «Boxers aged between 13 and 15» should still be permitted to compete, but «with light contact to the head and face».^[19] He said that «spectators and a change in the boxing rules can play a vital role in preventing child boxers from suffering brain injuries, abnormality in brain structure, Parkinson’s disease and early-onset Alzheimer’s later in life…Children aged between nine and 15 can take part in [Thai] boxing, but direct head contact must not be allowed». Referring to Findings [of 2014] on the Worst Forms of Child Labour as published by the US Department of Labor’s Bureau of International Labor Affairs, he said, «We know Muay Thai paid fighters have been exploited in the past like child labourers and the matter still remains a serious concern.»^[19]

At the 13th World Conference on Injury Prevention and Safety Promotion in 2018, it was revealed that up to three percent of the upcoming generation will grow up with learning disabilities unless an amendment is ratified that bans children under 12 from participating in boxing matches. International pediatricians have called on lawmakers in Thailand to help.^[24]

Injuries[edit]

Muay Thai is a combat sport that utilises eight different parts of the body (fists, elbows, knees and shins) so injuries are quite common in all levels of muay Thai. An injury is considered reportable if it requires the athlete to rest for more than one day. Many injuries in the sport go unreported as the fighters may not notice the injuries at first, refuse to admit that they need treatment, have a heightened pain threshold, fear that their instructor will perceive the injury negatively, or have confusion as to what is an injury.^[25] Similar to most sports, injury rates tend to be higher in beginners than amateurs and professionals. Soft tissue injuries are the most common form of injury in muay Thai, comprising between 80 and 90% of all injuries. These injuries are caused by repeated trauma to soft parts of the body. During matches there is little to no padding, leaving soft tissue vulnerable to strikes. The second most common injuries among beginners and amateurs are sprains and strains. It appears that these injuries can be easily avoided or reduced. Many participants of a study admitted to inadequate warm up before the event of the injury.^[25] The third most common injuries are fractures. Fractures are more commonly seen with amateur and professional fighters, because they are allowed full contact, while beginners are not. The most common sites for fractures are the nose, carpal bones, metacarpals, digits and ribs. The distribution of injuries differs significantly for beginners, amateurs and professionals, because as a fighter progresses through the different levels, the forces involved grow progressively higher, less padding and protective equipment is used, and athletes are likely to train harder, resulting in more serious injuries among experienced fighters.

Gambling[edit]

According to a Bangkok Post columnist, «…Thai professional boxing is all about gambling and big money. Gambling on muay Thai boxing is estimated to worth about 40 billion baht a year….all the talk about the promotion of Thai martial arts is just baloney.»^[12] Rob Cox, the manager of a boxing camp just east of Bangkok claims that «Without the gamblers, the sport would pretty much be dead. They’re killing it off, but they’re also keeping it alive».^[10]

The practice of fixing fights is not unknown. Boxers can earn from 60,000 to 150,000 baht for purposefully losing a fight. A fighter, later arrested, who threw a fight at Rajadamnern Stadium in December 2019, is an example.^[26] An infamous alleged case of match-fixing was the bout on 12 October 2014 in Pattaya between top Thai boxer Buakaw Banchamek and his challenger, Enriko Kehl, at the K-1 World Max Final event.^[12]

Folklore[edit]

An urban legend started being told by Thai people in 1767 around the time of the fall of the ancient Siamese capital of Ayutthaya, when the invading Burmese troops rounded up thousands of Siamese citizens. They then organised a seven-day, seven-night religious festival in honour of Buddha’s relics. The festivities included many forms of entertainment, such as costume plays, comedies and sword fighting matches. According to the folklore story, at one point, King Mangra wanted to see how Thai fighters would compare to his fighters. Nai Khanomtom was selected to fight against the King’s chosen champion and the boxing ring was set up in front of the throne. When the fight began, Nai Khanomtom charged out, using punches, kicks, elbows and knees to pummel his opponent until he collapsed. The King supposedly asked if Nai Khanomtom would fight nine other Burmese champions to prove himself. He agreed and fought one after the other with no rest periods. His last opponent was a great kickboxing teacher from Rakhine State whom Nai Khanomtom defeated with kicks.^[27]

King Mangra was so impressed that he allegedly remarked, «Every part of the Siamese is blessed with venom. Even with his bare hands, he can fell nine or ten opponents. But his Lord was incompetent and lost the country to the enemy. If he had been any good, there was no way the City of Ayutthaya would ever have fallen.»^[28]

To commemorate the story of Nai Khanom Tom, the Muay Thai Festival and Wai Khru Muay Thai Ceremony are staged annually every year on March 17.^[29]

Conditioning[edit]

Like most full contact fighting sports, muay Thai has a heavy focus on body conditioning.^[30] This can create a steep learning curve for newcomers to muay Thai but allows for rapid increases in fitness and stamina provided one avoids overtraining.^[31] Training regimens include many staples of combat sport conditioning such as running, shadowboxing, rope jumping, body weight resistance exercises, medicine ball exercises, abdominal exercises and, in some cases, weight training. Thai boxers rely heavily on kicks utilising the shin bone. As such, practitioners will repeatedly hit a dense heavy bag with their shins, conditioning it, hardening the bone through a process called cortical remodelling.^[32] Striking a sand-filled bag will have the same effect.

Training specific to a Thai fighter includes training with coaches on Thai pads, focus mitts, heavy bag, and sparring. Daily training includes many rounds (3–5 minute periods broken up by a short rest, often 1–2 minutes) of these various methods of practice. Thai pad training is a cornerstone of muay Thai conditioning that involves practicing punches, kicks, knees, and elbow strikes with a trainer wearing thick pads covering the forearms and hands. These special pads (often referred to as Thai pads) are used to absorb the impact of the fighter’s strikes and allow the fighter to react to the attacks of the pad holder in a live situation. The trainer will often also wear a belly pad around the abdominal area so that the fighter can attack with straight kicks or knees to the body at any time during the round.

Focus mitts are specific to training a fighter’s hand speed, punch combinations, timing, punching power, defence and counter-punching and may also be used to practice elbow strikes. Heavy bag training is a conditioning and power exercise that reinforces the techniques practiced on the pads. Sparring is a means to test technique, skills, range, strategy and timing against a partner. Sparring is often a light to medium contact exercise because competitive fighters on a full schedule are not advised to risk injury by sparring hard. Specific tactics and strategies can be trained with sparring including in close fighting, clinching and kneeing only, cutting off the ring, or using reach and distance to keep an aggressive fighter away.

Due to the rigorous training regimen (some Thai boxers fight almost every other week), professional boxers in Thailand have relatively short careers in the ring. Many retire from competition to begin instructing the next generation of Thai fighters. Most professional Thai boxers come from lower economic backgrounds, and the purse (after other parties have their cut) is sought as a means of support for the fighters and their families.^[33] Very few higher economic strata Thais join the professional muay Thai ranks; they usually either do not practice the sport or practice it only as amateur boxers.^[34]

Famous practitioners[edit]

See also[edit]

• Muay Boran
• Muay Chaiya
• Muay Lerdrit
• Wai khru ram muay
• Pra Jiad
• Mongkhon
• Muay Thai in popular culture
• Krabi–krabong
• Pencak silat

References[edit]

Further reading[edit]

• Kraitus, Panya (1992), Muay Thai The Most Distinguished Art of Fighting, Phuket: Transit Press, ISBN 974-86841-9-9
• Muay Thai The Essential Guide To The Art of Thai Boxing. Tony Moore. New Holland. ISBN 1 84330 596 8.
• Boykin, Chad (2002), Muay Thai Kickboxing – The Ultimate Guide to Conditioning, Training and Fighting, Boulder, CO: Paladin Press, ISBN 1-58160-320-7
• Prayukvong, Kat (2006), Muay Thai: A Living Legacy, Bangkok, Thailand: Spry Publishing Co., Ltd, ISBN 974-92937-0-3
• Hartig, Bastian (4 December 2018). Thai boxing: The dangerous fight against poverty (Video). Deutsche Welle. Retrieved 6 December 2018.
• Nusch, Florian (9 December 2017). Child Thai boxers: A fighting chance (Video). Deutsche Welle. Retrieved 6 December 2018.
• Vail, P. T. (1998). «Modern «Muai Thai» Mythology». Crossroads: An Interdisciplinary Journal of Southeast Asian Studies. 12 (2): 75–95. JSTOR 40860679.
• Wei, Lindsey (2020) Path of the Spiritual Warrior: Life and Teachings of Muay Thai Fighter Pedro Solana. Auckland: Purple Cloud Press, ISBN 979-8651807901

Not to be confused with Mai Tai.

Muay Thai (Thai: มวยไทย, RTGS: muai thai, pronounced [mūa̯j tʰāj] (listen)), sometimes referred to as Thai boxing, is a combat sport that uses stand-up striking along with various clinching techniques.^[1] This discipline is known as the «art of eight limbs», as it is characterised by the combined use of fists, elbows, knees and shins.^[2] Muay Thai became widespread internationally in the late 20th to 21st century, when Westernised practitioners from Thailand began competing in kickboxing and mixed-rules matches as well as matches under muay Thai rules around the world. The professional league is governed by The Professional Boxing Association of Thailand (P.A.T), sanctioned by The Sports Authority of Thailand (S.A.T.).

Muay Thai is related to other martial art styles such as musti-yuddha, Adimurai, muay Chaiya, muay boran, muay Lao, lethwei and tomoi.^[3] A practitioner of muay Thai is known as a nak muay. Western practitioners in Thailand are sometimes called nak muay farang, meaning «foreign boxer».^[4]

History[edit]

The history of muay Thai can be traced at least to the 16th century as a peace-time martial art practised by the soldiers of King Naresuan.^[5] An exhibition of muay Thai was observed and reported by Simon de la Loubère, a French diplomat who was sent by King Louis XIV to the Kingdom of Siam in 1687, in his famous work and the Ayutthaya Kingdom Burmese–Siamese War (1765–1767)^[6] Muay boran, and therefore muay Thai, was originally called by more generic names such as toi muay or simply muay. As well as being a practical fighting technique for use in actual warfare, muay became a sport in which the opponents fought in front of spectators who went to watch for entertainment. These muay contests gradually became an integral part of local festivals and celebrations, especially those held at temples. Eventually, the previously bare-fisted fighters started wearing lengths of hemp rope around their hands and forearms. This type of match was called muay khat chueak (มวยคาดเชือก)

19th century[edit]

The ascension of King Chulalongkorn (Rama V) to the throne in 1868 ushered in a golden age not only for muay but for the whole country of Thailand. Muay progressed greatly during the reign of Rama V as a direct result of the king’s personal interest in the sport. The country was at peace and muay functioned as a means of physical exercise, self-defense, attacking, recreation and personal advancement.^[7]

The modern era[edit]

1909-1910: King Chulalongkorn formalized muay boran («ancient boxing») by awarding (in 1910) three muen to victors at the funeral fights for his son (in 1909). The region style: Lopburi, Korat and Chaiya.^[7]

1913: British boxing was introduced into the curriculum of the Suan Kulap College. The first descriptive use of the term «muay Thai».

1919: British boxing and muay Thai were taught as one sport in the curriculum of the Suan Kulap College. Judo was also offered.

1921: First permanent ring in Siam at Suan Kulap College. Used for both muay and British boxing.

1923: Suan Sanuk Stadium. First international style three-rope ring with red and blue padded corners, near Lumpinee Park. Muay and British boxing.^[8]

King Rama VII (r. 1925–1935) pushed for codified rules for muay and they were put into place. Thailand’s first boxing ring was built in 1921 at Suan Kulap. Referees were introduced and rounds were now timed by kick. Fighters at the Lumpinee Boxing Stadium began wearing modern gloves, as well as hard groin protectors, during training and in boxing matches against foreigners. Traditional rope-binding (khat chueak) made the hands a hardened, dangerous striking tool. The use of knots in the rope over the knuckles made the strikes more abrasive and damaging for the opponent while protecting the hands of the fighter.^[9] This rope-binding was still used in fights between Thais but after a death in the ring, it was decided that fighters should wear gloves and cotton coverlets over the feet and ankles. It was also around this time that the term «muay Thai» became commonly used, while the older form of the style came to be known as «muay boran», which is now performed primarily as an exhibition art form.

Muay Thai was at the height of its popularity in the 1980s and 1990s. Top fighters commanded purses of up to 200,000 baht and the stadia where gambling was legal drew big gates and big advertising revenues. In 2016, a payout to a superstar fighter was about 100,000 baht per fight,^[10] but can range as high as 540,000 baht for a bout.^[11]

In 1993, the International Federation of Muaythai Amateur, or IFMA was inaugurated. It became the governing body of amateur muay Thai consisting of 128 member countries worldwide and is recognised by the Olympic Council of Asia.

In 1995, the World Muaythai Council, the oldest and largest professional sanctioning organisations of muay Thai, was established by the Thai government and sanctioned by the Sports Authority of Thailand.

In 1995, the World Muay Thai Federation was founded by the merger of two existing organisations, and established in Bangkok, becoming the federation governing international muay Thai. In August 2012, it had over 70 member countries. Its president is elected at the World Muay Thai Congress.

In 2006, muay Thai was included in SportAccord with IFMA. One of the requirements of SportAccord was that no sport can have a name of a country in its name. As a result, an amendment was made in the IFMA constitution to change the name of the sport from «muay Thai» to «muaythai» —written as one word in accordance with Olympic requirements.

In 2014, muay Thai was included in the International World Games Association (IWGA) and was represented in the official programme of The World Games 2017 in Wrocław, Poland.

In January 2015, muay Thai was granted the patronage of the International University Sports Federation (FISU) and, from 16 to 23 March 2015, the first University World Muaythai Cup was held in Bangkok.

In 2020, there are more than 3,800 Thai boxing gyms overseas.^[12]

Rules[edit]

According to IFMA rules and regulations, Muay Thai is a martial art that uses every part of the body’s limbs, therefore allowing for strikes including the fists, legs, knees and elbows.

Generally, for a strike to count towards the point score, it has to hit without being blocked or guarded against by the opponent. Strikes also do not score if they hit the opponent’s glove, forearm, foot, or shin. Strikes to the groin are against the rules and if found to be intentional are counted as fouls.^[13]

If both Muay Thai fighters have the same score at the end of the round, the winner is determined by which fighter has the more powerful strike.

Olympics[edit]

Timeline of International Federation of Muaythai Associations (IFMA) from founding to International Olympic Committee (IOC) recognition:^[14]

• 1992 – National Federation of Muaythai Associations founded.
• 1995 – International Amateur Muay Thai Federation (IAMTF) founded.
• 2012 – Official request for International Olympic Committee (IOC) recognition launched.
• 2016 – First endorsement received.
• 2017 – Muaythai is included in the World Games.
• 2021 – On June 10, the IOC Board of Directors agreed on the full endorsement of IFMA at the 138th IOC General Assembly in Tokyo.
• 2021 – On July 20, the IOC General Assembly granted full recognition to the International Federation of Muaythai Associations (IFMA) and Muaythai.
• 2023 — On January 11, USA MuayThai has been officially approved by The United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee (USOPC) and was recognized by the organization’s committee as the newest member with a chance to build on the 2028 Olympic in the United States.
• 2023 — The European Olympic Committees (EOC) had officially announced the inclusion of Muay Thai, or Thai-style boxing, at the 2023 European Games to be held in Krakow, Poland.

Traditional wear[edit]

The mongkhon, or mongkol (headband), and pra jiad (armbands) are often worn into the ring before the match begins. They originated when Siam was in a constant state of war. Young men would tear off pieces of a loved one’s clothing (often a mother’s sarong) and wear it in battle for good luck as well as to ward off harmful spirits. In modern times, the mongkol (lit. «holy spirit», «luck», «protection») is worn as a tribute to the fighter’s gym. The mongkol is traditionally presented by a trainer to the fighter when he judges that the fighter is ready to represent the gym in the ring. Often, after the fighter has finished the wai kru, the trainer will take the mongkol off his head and place it in his corner of the ring for luck. They were also used for protection. Whether the fighter is a Buddhist or not, it is common for them to bring the mongkol to a Buddhist monk who blesses it for good luck prior to stepping into the ring.

Techniques[edit]

Formal muay Thai techniques are divided into two groups: mae mai (แม่ไม้), or «major techniques», and luk mai (ลูกไม้), or «minor techniques». Muay Thai is often a fighting art of attrition, where opponents exchange blows with one another.^[15] This is certainly the case with traditional stylists in Thailand, but is a less popular form of fighting in the contemporary world fighting circuit where the Thai style of exchanging blow for blow is no longer favorable. Almost all techniques in muay Thai use the entire body movement, rotating the hip with each kick, punch, elbow and block.

Punching (Chok)[edit]

English	Thai	Romanization	IPA
Jab	หมัดหน้า/หมัดแย็บ	Mat na/Mat yaep	[màt nâ]
Cross/Straight	หมัดตรง	Mat trong	[màt troŋ]
Hook/Swing	หมัดเหวี่ยงสั้น	Mat tawad/mat wiang san	[màt wìəŋ sân]
Overhand/Haymaker	หมัดเหวี่ยงยาว	Mat khork/mat wiang yao	[màt wìəŋ jaːw]
Backfist/Spinning Backfist	หมัดเหวี่ยงกลับ	Mat wiang klap/Mat clap lang/Kwang jag narai	[màt wìəŋ klàp]
Uppercut	หมัดเสย/หมัดสอยดาว	Mat soei/Mat ngat	[màt sɤ̌j], [màt sɔ̌j daːw]
Superman punch/Cobra punch	กระโดดชก	Kradot chok	[kradòːt tɕʰók]

The punch techniques in muay Thai were originally quite limited, being crosses and a long (or lazy) circular strike made with a straight (but not locked) arm and landing with the heel of the palm. Cross-fertilisation with Western boxing and Western martial arts mean the full range of western boxing punches are now used: lead jab, straight/cross, hook, uppercut, shovel and corkscrew punches and overhands, as well as hammer fists and back fists.

As a tactic, body punching is used less in muay Thai than most other striking combat sports to avoid exposing the attacker’s head to counter strikes from knees or elbows. To utilize the range of targeting points, in keeping with the centre line theory, the fighter can use either the Western or Thai stance which allows for either long range or short range attacks to be undertaken effectively without compromising guard.

Elbow (Sok)[edit]

The elbow can be used in several ways as a striking weapon: horizontal, diagonal-upwards, diagonal-downwards, uppercut, downward, backward-spinning,and flying. From the side, it can be used as either a finishing move or as a way to cut the opponent’s eyebrow so that blood might block his vision. The diagonal elbows are faster than the other forms but are less powerful. The elbow strike is considered the most dangerous form of attack in the sport.

English	Thai	Romanization	IPA
Elbow slash	ศอกตี (ศอกสับ)	Sok ti	[sɔ̀ːk tiː]
Horizontal elbow	ศอกตัด	Sok tat	[sɔ̀ːk tàt]
Uppercut elbow	ศอกงัด	Sok ngat	[sɔ̀ːk ŋát]
Forward elbow thrust	ศอกพุ่ง	Sok phung	[sɔ̀ːk pʰûŋ]
Reverse horizontal elbow	ศอกเหวี่ยงกลับ (ศอกกระทุ้ง)	Sok wiang klap	[sɔ̀ːk wìəŋ klàp]
Spinning elbow	ศอกกลับ	Sok klap	[sɔ̀ːk klàp]
Double elbow chop	ศอกกลับคู่	Sok klap khu	[sɔ̀ːk klàp kʰûː]
Mid-air elbow strike/Jump elbow chop	กระโดดศอก	Kradot sok	[kradòːt sɔ̀ːk]

There is a distinct difference between a single elbow and a follow-up elbow. The single elbow is a move independent from any other, whereas a follow-up elbow is the second strike from the same arm, being a hook or straight punch first with an elbow follow-up. Such elbows, and most other elbow strikes, are used when the distance between fighters becomes too small and there is too little space to throw a hook at the opponent’s head.

Elbows can be used to great effect as blocks or defences against, for example, spring knees, side body knees, body kicks or punches. When well connected, an elbow strike can cause serious damage to the opponent, including cuts or even a knockout.

Kicking (Te)[edit]

English	Thai	Romanization	IPA
Straight kick	เตะตรง	Te trong	[tèʔ troŋ]
Roundhouse kick	เตะตัด	Te tat	[tèʔ tàt]
Diagonal kick	เตะเฉียง	Te chiang	[tèʔ tɕʰǐəŋ]
Half-shin, half-knee kick	เตะครึ่งแข้งครึ่งเข่า	Te khrueng khaeng khrueng khao	[tèʔ kʰrɯ̂ŋ kʰɛ̂ŋ kʰrɯ̂ŋ kʰàw]
Reverse roundhouse kick	เตะกลับหลัง	Te klap lang/Jorakhe faad hang	[tèʔ klàp lǎŋ]
Down roundhouse kick	เตะกด	Te kot	[tèʔ kòt]
Axe heel kick	เตะเข่า	Te khao	[tèʔ kʰàw]
Jump kick	กระโดดเตะ	Kradot te	[kradòːt tèʔ]
Step-up kick	เขยิบเตะ	Khayoep te/yiep te	[kʰa.jɤ̀p tèʔ]

The two most common kicks^[16] in muay Thai are known as the thip (literally «foot jab») and the te chiang (kicking upwards in the shape of a triangle cutting under the arm and ribs), or roundhouse kick. The Thai roundhouse kick uses a rotational movement of the entire body and has been widely adopted by practitioners of other combat sports. It is done from a circular stance with the back leg just a little ways back (roughly shoulder width apart) in comparison to instinctive upper body fighting (boxing) where the legs must create a wider base. The roundhouse kick draws its power almost entirely from the rotational movement of the hips, counter-rotation of the shoulders and arms are also often used to add torque to the lower body and increase the power of the kick as well.^[17]

If a roundhouse kick is attempted by the opponent, the Thai boxer will normally check the kick, that is, he will block the kick with the outside of his lower leg. Thai boxers are trained to always connect with the shin. The foot contains many fine bones and is much weaker. A fighter may end up hurting himself if he tries to strike with his foot or instep. Shins are trained by repeatedly striking firm objects, such as pads or heavy bags.

Knee (Ti Khao)^[18][edit]

English	Thai	Romanization	IPA
Straight knee strike	เข่าตรง	Khao trong	[kʰàw troŋ]
Diagonal knee strike	เข่าเฉียง	Khao chiang	[kʰàw tɕʰǐəŋ]
Curving knee strike	เข่าโค้ง	Khao khong	[kʰàw kʰóːŋ]
Horizontal knee strike	เข่าตัด	Khao tat	[kʰàw tàt]
Knee slap	เข่าตบ	Khao ti/khao top	[kʰàw tòp]
Knee bomb	เข่ายาว	Khao yao	[kʰàw jaːw]
Flying knee	เข่าลอย	Khao loi	[kʰàw lɔːj]
Step-up knee strike	เข่าเหยียบ	Khao yiap	[kʰàw jìəp]

• Khao dot [kʰàw dòːt] (Jumping knee strike) – the boxer jumps up on one leg and strikes with that leg’s knee.
• Khao loi (Flying knee strike) – the boxer takes a step(s), jumps forward and off one leg and strikes with that leg’s knee.
• Khao thon [kʰàw tʰoːn] (Straight knee strike) – the boxer simply thrusts it forward but not upwards, unless he is holding an opponent’s head down in a clinch and intend to knee upwards into the face. According to one written source, this technique is somewhat more recent than khao dot or khao loi.^{[citation needed]} Supposedly, when the Thai boxers fought with rope-bound hands rather than the modern boxing gloves, this particular technique was subject to potentially vicious cutting, slicing and sawing by an alert opponent who would block it or deflect it with the sharp «rope-glove» edges which are sometimes dipped in water to make the rope much stronger. This explanation also holds true for some of the following knee strikes below as well.

Foot-thrust (Teep)[edit]

The foot-thrust, or literally, «foot jab», is one of the techniques in muay Thai. It is mainly used as a defensive technique to control distance or block attacks. Foot-thrusts should be thrown quickly but with enough force to knock an opponent off balance.

English	Thai	Romanization	IPA
Straight foot-thrust	ถีบตรง	Thip trong	[tʰìːp troŋ]
Sideways foot-thrust	ถีบข้าง	Thip khang	[tʰìːp kʰâːŋ]
Reverse foot-thrust	ถีบกลับหลัง	Thip klap lang	[tʰìːp klàp lǎŋ]
Slapping foot-thrust	ถีบตบ	Thip top	[tʰìːp tòp]
Jumping foot-thrust	กระโดดถีบ	Kradot thip	[kradòːt tʰìːp]

Clinch and neck wrestling (Chap kho)[edit]

In Western boxing, the two fighters are separated when they clinch; in muay Thai, however, they are not. It is often in the clinch that knee and elbow techniques are used. To strike and bind the opponent for both offensive and defensive purposes, small amounts of stand-up grappling are used in the clinch. The front clinch should be performed with the palm of one hand on the back of the other. There are three reasons why the fingers must not be intertwined. 1) In the ring fighters are wearing boxing gloves and cannot intertwine their fingers. 2) The Thai front clinch involves pressing the head of the opponent downwards, which is easier if the hands are locked behind the back of the head instead of behind the neck. Furthermore, the arms should be putting as much pressure on the neck as possible. 3) A fighter may incur an injury to one or more fingers if they are intertwined, and it becomes more difficult to release the grip in order to quickly elbow the opponent’s head.

A correct clinch also involves the fighter’s forearms pressing against the opponent’s collar bone while the hands are around the opponent’s head rather than the opponent’s neck. The general way to get out of a clinch is to push the opponent’s head backward or elbow them, as the clinch requires both participants to be very close to one another. Additionally, the non-dominant clincher can try to «swim» their arm underneath and inside the opponent’s clinch, establishing the previously non-dominant clincher as the dominant clincher.

Muay Thai has several other variants of the clinch or chap kho [tɕàp kʰɔː], including:

• Arm clinch: One or both hands controls the inside of the defender’s arm(s) and where the second hand if free is in the front clinch position. This clinch is used to briefly control the opponent before applying a knee strike or throw.
• Side clinch: One arm passes around the front of the defender with the attacker’s shoulder pressed into the defender’s arm pit and the other arm passing round the back which allows the attacker to apply knee strikes to the defender’s back or to throw the defender readily.
• Low clinch: Both controlling arms pass under the defender’s arms, which is generally used by the shorter of two opponents.
• Swan-neck: One hand around the rear of the neck is used to briefly clinch an opponent before a strike.^{[citation needed]}

Defence against attacks[edit]

Defences in muay Thai are categorised in six groups:

• Blocking – defender’s hard blocks to stop a strike in its path so preventing it reaching its target (e.g. the shin block described in more detail below)
• Parry/Block – Parrying or blocking uses the kickboxer’s hands as defensive tools to deflect incoming attacks. As the opponent’s punch arrives, the boxer delivers a sharp, lateral, open-handed blow to the opponent’s wrist or forearm, redirecting the punch.
• Avoidance – moving a body part out of the way or range of a strike so the defender remains in range for a counter-strike. For example, the defender moves their front leg backward to avoid the attacker’s low kick, then immediately counters with a roundhouse kick. Or the defender might lay their head back from the attacker’s high roundhouse kick then counter-attack with a side kick.
• Evasion – moving the body out of the way or range of a strike so the defender has to move close again to counter-attack, e.g. defender jumping laterally or back from attacker’s kicks
• Disruption – Pre-empting an attack e.g. with defender using disruptive techniques like jab, foot-thrust or low roundhouse kick, generally called a «leg kick» (to the outside or inside of the attacker’s front leg, just above the knee) as the attacker attempts to close distance
• Anticipation – Defender catching a strike (e.g., catching a roundhouse kick to the body) or countering it before it lands (e.g., defender’s low kick to the supporting leg below as the attacker initiates a high roundhouse kick).

Defences in practice[edit]

Defensively, the concept of «wall of defence» is used, in which shoulders, arms and legs are used to hinder the attacker from successfully executing techniques. Blocking is a critical element in muay Thai and compounds the level of conditioning a successful practitioner must possess. Low and mid body roundhouse kicks are normally blocked with the upper portion of a raised shin (this block is known as a «check»). High body strikes are blocked ideally with the forearms and shoulder together, or if enough time is allowed for a parry, the glove (elusively), elbow, or shin will be used. Midsection roundhouse kicks can also be caught/trapped, allowing for a sweep or counter-attack to the remaining leg of the opponent. Punches are blocked with an ordinary boxing guard and techniques similar, if not identical, to basic boxing technique. A common means of blocking a punch is using the hand on the same side as the oncoming punch. For example, if an orthodox fighter throws a jab (being the left hand), the defender will make a slight tap to redirect the punch’s angle with the right hand. The deflection is always as small and precise as possible to avoid unnecessary energy expenditure and return the hand to the guard as quickly as possible. Hooks are often blocked with a motion sometimes described as «combing the hair», that is, raising the elbow forward and effectively shielding the head with the forearm, flexed biceps and shoulder. More advanced muay Thai blocks are usually in the form of counter-strikes, using the opponent’s weight (as they strike) to amplify the damage that the countering opponent can deliver. This requires impeccable timing and thus can generally only be learned by many repetitions.

Child boxers[edit]

In 2016, 9,998 children under the age of 15 were registered with Board of Boxing under the Sport Authority of Thailand, according to the Child Safety Promotion and Injury Prevention Research Centre (CSIP).^[19] Some estimates put the number of child boxers nationwide at between 200,000 and 300,000, some as young as four years old.^[20]

The Advanced Diagnostic Imaging Centre (AIMC) at Ramathibodi Hospital studied 300 child boxers aged under 15 with two to more than five years of experience, as well as 200 children who do not box. The findings show that child boxers not only sustain brain injuries, they also have a lower IQ, about 10 points lower than average levels. Moreover, IQ levels correlate with the length of their training.^[20][21] Beyond brain damage, the death of young fighters in the ring sometimes occurs.^[22]

Adisak Plitapolkarnpim, director of CSIP,^[23] was indirectly quoted (in 2016) as having said that muay Thai practitioners «younger than 15 years old are being urged to avoid ‘head contact’ to reduce the risk of brain injuries, while children aged under nine should be banned from the combat fight»; furthermore, the Boxing Act’s minimum age to compete professionally was largely being flouted; furthermore, quoted indirectly, «Boxers aged between 13 and 15» should still be permitted to compete, but «with light contact to the head and face».^[19] He said that «spectators and a change in the boxing rules can play a vital role in preventing child boxers from suffering brain injuries, abnormality in brain structure, Parkinson’s disease and early-onset Alzheimer’s later in life…Children aged between nine and 15 can take part in [Thai] boxing, but direct head contact must not be allowed». Referring to Findings [of 2014] on the Worst Forms of Child Labour as published by the US Department of Labor’s Bureau of International Labor Affairs, he said, «We know Muay Thai paid fighters have been exploited in the past like child labourers and the matter still remains a serious concern.»^[19]

At the 13th World Conference on Injury Prevention and Safety Promotion in 2018, it was revealed that up to three percent of the upcoming generation will grow up with learning disabilities unless an amendment is ratified that bans children under 12 from participating in boxing matches. International pediatricians have called on lawmakers in Thailand to help.^[24]

Injuries[edit]

Muay Thai is a combat sport that utilises eight different parts of the body (fists, elbows, knees and shins) so injuries are quite common in all levels of muay Thai. An injury is considered reportable if it requires the athlete to rest for more than one day. Many injuries in the sport go unreported as the fighters may not notice the injuries at first, refuse to admit that they need treatment, have a heightened pain threshold, fear that their instructor will perceive the injury negatively, or have confusion as to what is an injury.^[25] Similar to most sports, injury rates tend to be higher in beginners than amateurs and professionals. Soft tissue injuries are the most common form of injury in muay Thai, comprising between 80 and 90% of all injuries. These injuries are caused by repeated trauma to soft parts of the body. During matches there is little to no padding, leaving soft tissue vulnerable to strikes. The second most common injuries among beginners and amateurs are sprains and strains. It appears that these injuries can be easily avoided or reduced. Many participants of a study admitted to inadequate warm up before the event of the injury.^[25] The third most common injuries are fractures. Fractures are more commonly seen with amateur and professional fighters, because they are allowed full contact, while beginners are not. The most common sites for fractures are the nose, carpal bones, metacarpals, digits and ribs. The distribution of injuries differs significantly for beginners, amateurs and professionals, because as a fighter progresses through the different levels, the forces involved grow progressively higher, less padding and protective equipment is used, and athletes are likely to train harder, resulting in more serious injuries among experienced fighters.

Gambling[edit]

According to a Bangkok Post columnist, «…Thai professional boxing is all about gambling and big money. Gambling on muay Thai boxing is estimated to worth about 40 billion baht a year….all the talk about the promotion of Thai martial arts is just baloney.»^[12] Rob Cox, the manager of a boxing camp just east of Bangkok claims that «Without the gamblers, the sport would pretty much be dead. They’re killing it off, but they’re also keeping it alive».^[10]

The practice of fixing fights is not unknown. Boxers can earn from 60,000 to 150,000 baht for purposefully losing a fight. A fighter, later arrested, who threw a fight at Rajadamnern Stadium in December 2019, is an example.^[26] An infamous alleged case of match-fixing was the bout on 12 October 2014 in Pattaya between top Thai boxer Buakaw Banchamek and his challenger, Enriko Kehl, at the K-1 World Max Final event.^[12]

Folklore[edit]

An urban legend started being told by Thai people in 1767 around the time of the fall of the ancient Siamese capital of Ayutthaya, when the invading Burmese troops rounded up thousands of Siamese citizens. They then organised a seven-day, seven-night religious festival in honour of Buddha’s relics. The festivities included many forms of entertainment, such as costume plays, comedies and sword fighting matches. According to the folklore story, at one point, King Mangra wanted to see how Thai fighters would compare to his fighters. Nai Khanomtom was selected to fight against the King’s chosen champion and the boxing ring was set up in front of the throne. When the fight began, Nai Khanomtom charged out, using punches, kicks, elbows and knees to pummel his opponent until he collapsed. The King supposedly asked if Nai Khanomtom would fight nine other Burmese champions to prove himself. He agreed and fought one after the other with no rest periods. His last opponent was a great kickboxing teacher from Rakhine State whom Nai Khanomtom defeated with kicks.^[27]

King Mangra was so impressed that he allegedly remarked, «Every part of the Siamese is blessed with venom. Even with his bare hands, he can fell nine or ten opponents. But his Lord was incompetent and lost the country to the enemy. If he had been any good, there was no way the City of Ayutthaya would ever have fallen.»^[28]

To commemorate the story of Nai Khanom Tom, the Muay Thai Festival and Wai Khru Muay Thai Ceremony are staged annually every year on March 17.^[29]

Conditioning[edit]

Like most full contact fighting sports, muay Thai has a heavy focus on body conditioning.^[30] This can create a steep learning curve for newcomers to muay Thai but allows for rapid increases in fitness and stamina provided one avoids overtraining.^[31] Training regimens include many staples of combat sport conditioning such as running, shadowboxing, rope jumping, body weight resistance exercises, medicine ball exercises, abdominal exercises and, in some cases, weight training. Thai boxers rely heavily on kicks utilising the shin bone. As such, practitioners will repeatedly hit a dense heavy bag with their shins, conditioning it, hardening the bone through a process called cortical remodelling.^[32] Striking a sand-filled bag will have the same effect.

Training specific to a Thai fighter includes training with coaches on Thai pads, focus mitts, heavy bag, and sparring. Daily training includes many rounds (3–5 minute periods broken up by a short rest, often 1–2 minutes) of these various methods of practice. Thai pad training is a cornerstone of muay Thai conditioning that involves practicing punches, kicks, knees, and elbow strikes with a trainer wearing thick pads covering the forearms and hands. These special pads (often referred to as Thai pads) are used to absorb the impact of the fighter’s strikes and allow the fighter to react to the attacks of the pad holder in a live situation. The trainer will often also wear a belly pad around the abdominal area so that the fighter can attack with straight kicks or knees to the body at any time during the round.

Focus mitts are specific to training a fighter’s hand speed, punch combinations, timing, punching power, defence and counter-punching and may also be used to practice elbow strikes. Heavy bag training is a conditioning and power exercise that reinforces the techniques practiced on the pads. Sparring is a means to test technique, skills, range, strategy and timing against a partner. Sparring is often a light to medium contact exercise because competitive fighters on a full schedule are not advised to risk injury by sparring hard. Specific tactics and strategies can be trained with sparring including in close fighting, clinching and kneeing only, cutting off the ring, or using reach and distance to keep an aggressive fighter away.

Due to the rigorous training regimen (some Thai boxers fight almost every other week), professional boxers in Thailand have relatively short careers in the ring. Many retire from competition to begin instructing the next generation of Thai fighters. Most professional Thai boxers come from lower economic backgrounds, and the purse (after other parties have their cut) is sought as a means of support for the fighters and their families.^[33] Very few higher economic strata Thais join the professional muay Thai ranks; they usually either do not practice the sport or practice it only as amateur boxers.^[34]

Famous practitioners[edit]

See also[edit]

• Muay Boran
• Muay Chaiya
• Muay Lerdrit
• Wai khru ram muay
• Pra Jiad
• Mongkhon
• Muay Thai in popular culture
• Krabi–krabong
• Pencak silat

References[edit]

Further reading[edit]

• Kraitus, Panya (1992), Muay Thai The Most Distinguished Art of Fighting, Phuket: Transit Press, ISBN 974-86841-9-9
• Muay Thai The Essential Guide To The Art of Thai Boxing. Tony Moore. New Holland. ISBN 1 84330 596 8.
• Boykin, Chad (2002), Muay Thai Kickboxing – The Ultimate Guide to Conditioning, Training and Fighting, Boulder, CO: Paladin Press, ISBN 1-58160-320-7
• Prayukvong, Kat (2006), Muay Thai: A Living Legacy, Bangkok, Thailand: Spry Publishing Co., Ltd, ISBN 974-92937-0-3
• Hartig, Bastian (4 December 2018). Thai boxing: The dangerous fight against poverty (Video). Deutsche Welle. Retrieved 6 December 2018.
• Nusch, Florian (9 December 2017). Child Thai boxers: A fighting chance (Video). Deutsche Welle. Retrieved 6 December 2018.
• Vail, P. T. (1998). «Modern «Muai Thai» Mythology». Crossroads: An Interdisciplinary Journal of Southeast Asian Studies. 12 (2): 75–95. JSTOR 40860679.
• Wei, Lindsey (2020) Path of the Spiritual Warrior: Life and Teachings of Muay Thai Fighter Pedro Solana. Auckland: Purple Cloud Press, ISBN 979-8651807901

Muay Thai
Also called	Thai Boxing, Thai Kickboxing
Country of origin	Thailand
Focus	Punching, Striking, Kicking

Muay Thai (Thai: มวยไทย, RTGS: Muai Thai, IPA: [mūɛj tʰāj]) is a hard martial art from Thailand that uses stand-up striking along with various clinching techniques. It is similar to other Indochinese styles of kickboxing, namely pradal serey from Cambodia, tomoi from Malaysia, lethwei from Myanmar and Muay Lao from Laos. Descended from muay boran, Muay Thai is Thailand’s national sport.^{[1][2][3] [4]}

The word muay derives from the Sanskrit mavya and Thai comes from the word Tai. Muay Thai is referred to as the «Art of Eight Limbs» or the «Science Of Eight Limbs» because it makes use of punches, kicks, elbows and knee strikes, thus using eight «points of contact», as opposed to «two points» (fists) in Western boxing and «four points» (hands and feet) used in sport-oriented martial arts.^[5] A practitioner of Muay Thai is known as a nak muay. Western practitioners are sometimes called nak muay farang meaning foreign boxer.^[6]

History[]

Origins[]

Thailand is 800 years old starting in 1238 A.D. under the Kingdom of Sukhothai. The martial art can be traced back using records to 400 years ago in the former capital of Thailand known as Ayutthaya. Various forms of kickboxing have long been practiced throughout mainland Southeast Asia. Based on a combination of Chinese and Indian martial arts,^[8]. In Thailand, Muay Thai evolved from muay boran (ancient boxing), an unarmed combat method which would probably have been used by Siamese soldiers after losing their weapons in battle. Some believe that the ancient Siamese military created Muay Boran from the weapon-based art of krabi krabong but others contend that the two were merely developed alongside each other. Krabi krabong nevertheless was an important influence on Muay Boran and so Muay Thai as can be seen in several kicks, holds and the movements in the wai khru which have their origins in armed combat.

Muay Boran, and therefore Muay Thai, was originally called toi muay or simply muay. As well as being a practical fighting technique for use in actual warfare, muay became a sport in which the opponents fought in front of spectators who went to watch for entertainment. These muay contests gradually became an integral part of local festivals and celebrations, especially those held at temples. It was even used as entertainment for kings. Eventually, the previously bare-fisted fighters started wearing lengths of hemp rope around their hands and forearms. This type of match was ca

lled muay khat chueak (มวยคาดเชือก).

Muay gradually became a possible means of personal advancement as the nobility increasingly esteemed skillful practitioners of the art and invited selected fighters to come to live in the royal palace to teach muay to the staff of the royal household, soldiers, princes or the king’s personal guards.^{[citation needed]} This «royal muay» was called muay luang (มวยหลวง). Some time during the Ayutthaya period, a platoon of royal guards was established, whose duty was to protect king and the country. They were known as Krom Nak Muay («Muay Kick-Fighters’ Regiment»). This royal patronage of kick-muay continued through the reigns of Rama V and VII.

Modernization[]

Ascension of King Chulalongkorn (Rama V) to the throne in 1868 ushered in a golden age not only for muay but for the whole country of Thailand. Muay progressed greatly during the reign of Rama V as a direct result of the king’s personal interest in the art. The country was at peace and muay functioned as a means of physical exercise, self-defense, recreation, and personal advancement.^{[citation needed]} Masters of the art began teaching muay in training camps where students were provided with food and shelter. Trainees would be treated as one family and it was customary for students to adopt the camp’s name as their own surname. Scouts would be sent by the royal family to organize matches between different camps. King Rama the VII pushed for codified rules for Muay Thai, and they were put into place. Thailand’s first boxing ring was built in 1921 at Suan Kularp. Referees were introduced and rounds were now timed by kick. Fighters at the Lumpinee Kickboxing Stadium began wearing modern gloves during training and in boxing matches against foreigners. Rope-binding was still used in fights between Thais bu
t after the occurrence of a death in the ring, it was decided that fighters should wear gloves and cotton coverlets over the feet and ankles. It was also around this time that the term Muay Thai became commonly used while the older form of the style was referred to as muay boran. With the success of Muay Thai in the mixed martial arts, it has become the de facto style of choice for competitive stand-up fighters. As a result, western practitioners have incorporated much more powerful hand striking techniques from boxing although some Thai purists accuse them of diluting the art.

Nai Khanomtom[]

The most popular folklore regarding muay boran is that of Nai Khanomtom.

At the time of the fall of the ancient Siam capital of Ayutthaya in 1767, the invading Burmese troops rounded up thousands of Thais and took them to Burma as prisoners. Among them were a large number of Thai kickboxers, who were taken to the city of Ava.

In 1774, in the Burmese city of Rangoon, the Burmese King Hsinbyushin (known in Thai as «King Mangra») decided to organize a seven-day, seven-night religious festival in honor of Buddha’s relics. The festivities included many forms of entertainment, such as the costume plays called likay, comedies and farces, and sword-fighting matches. At one point, King Hsinbyushin wanted to see how muay boran would compare to the Burmese art Lethwei^{[citation needed]}. Nai Khanomtom was selected to fight against the Burmese champion. The boxing ring was set up in front of the throne and Nai Khanomtom did a traditional Wai Kru pre-fight dance, to pay his respects to his teachers and ancestors, as well as the spectators, dancing around his opponent. This amazed and perplexed the Burmese people, who thought it was black magic. When the fight began, Nai Khanomtom charged out, using punches, kicks, elbows, and knees to pummel his opponent until he collapsed.

However the Burmese referee said the Burmese champion was too distracted by the kick, and declared the knockout invalid. The King then asked if Nai Khanomtom would fight nine other Burmese champions to prove himself. He agreed and fought them all, one after the other with no rest periods in between. His last opponent was a great kickboxing teacher from Rakhine. Nai Khanomtom mangled him by his kicks and no one else dared to challenge him.

King Mangra was so impressed that he allegedly remarked, «Every part of the Thai is blessed with venom. Even with his bare hands, he can fell nine or ten opponents. But his Lord was incompetent and lost the country to the enemy. If he would have been any good, there was no way the City of Ayutthaya would ever have fallen.»^{[citation needed]}

King Mangra granted Nai Khanomtom freedom along with either riches or two beautiful Burmese wives. Nai Khanomtom chose the wives as he said that money was easier to find. He then departed with his wives for Siam. Other variations of this story had him also winning the release of his fellow Thai prisoners. His feat is celebrated every March 17 as Boxer’s Day or National Muay Boran Day in his honor and that of muay boran’s.

Today, some have wrongly attributed the legend of Nai Khanomtom to King Naresuan, who was once taken by the Burmese. However, Nai Khanomtom and King Naresuan were almost two centuries apart.

Techniques[]

[1][2]Muay Thai match in Bangkok, Thailand.Formal Muay Thai techniques are divided into two groups: mae mai or major techniques and luk mai or minor techniques. Muay Thai is often a fighting art of attrition, where opponents exchange blows with one another. This is certainly the case with traditional stylists in Thailand, but is a less popular form of fighting in the contemporary world fighting circuit where the Thai style of exchanging blow for blow is no longer favorable. Almost all techniques in Muay Thai use the entire body movement, rotating the hip with each kick, punch, elbow and block.

Punching (Chok)[]

English	Thai	Romanization	IPA
Cross (boxing)	หมัดตรง	Mat trong	[màt troŋ]
Hook	หมัดเหวี่ยงสั้น	Mat wiang san	[màt wìəŋ sân]
Swing	หมัดเหวี่ยงยาว	Mat wiang yao	[màt wìəŋ jaːw]
Spinning Backfist	หมัดเหวี่ยงกลับ	Mat wiang klap	[màt wìəŋ klàp]
Uppercut	หมัดเสย/หมัดสอยดาว	Mat soei/Mat soi dao	[màt sɤ̌j], [màt sɔ̌j daːw]
Cobra	กระโดดชก	Kradot chok	[kradòːt tɕʰók]

The punch techniques in Muay Thai were originally quite limited being crosses and a long (or lazy) circular strike made with a straight (but not locked) arm and landing with the heel of the palm. Cross-fertilization with Western boxing and western martial arts mean the full range of western boxing punches are now used: lead jab, straight/cross, hook, uppercut, shovel and corkscrew punches and overhands as well as hammer fists and back fists.

As a tactic, body punching is used less in Muay Thai than most other striking martial arts to avoid exposing the attacker’s head to counter strikes from knees or elbows. To utilize the range of targeting points, in keeping with the center line theory, the fighter can use either the Western or Thai stance which allows for either long range or short range attacks to be undertaken effectively without compromising guard.

Elbow (Ti sok)[]

The elbow can be used in several ways as a striking weapon: horizontal, diagonal-upwards, diagonal-downwards, uppercut, downward, backward-spinning and flying. From the side, it can be used as either a finishing move or as a way to cut the opponent’s eyebrow so that blood might block his vision. The diagonal elbows are faster than the other forms, but are less powerful.

English	Thai	Romanization	IPA
Elbow Slash	ศอกตี	Sok ti	[sɔ̀ːk tiː]
Horizontal Elbow	ศอกตัด	Sok tat	[sɔ̀ːk tàt]
Uppercut Elbow	ศอกงัด	Sok ngat	[sɔ̀ːk ŋát]
Forward Elbow Thrust	ศอกพุ่ง	Sok phung	[sɔ̀ːk pʰûŋ]
Reverse Horizontal Elbow	ศอกเหวี่ยงกลับ	Sok wiang klap	[sɔ̀ːk wìəŋ klàp]
Spinning Elbow	ศอกกลับ	Sok klap	[sɔ̀ːk klàp]
Elbow Chop	ศอกสับ	Sok sap	[sɔ̀ːk sàp]
Double Elbow Chop	ศอกกลับคู่	Sok klap khu	[sɔ̀ːk klàp kʰûː]
Mid-Air Elbow Strike	กระโดดศอก	Kradot sok	[kradòːt sɔ̀ːk]

There is also a distinct difference between a single elbow and a follow-up elbow. The single elbow is an independent move, whereas a follow-up elbow is the second strike from the same arm, being a hook or straight punch first with an elbow follow-up. Such elbows, and most other elbow strikes, are used when the distance between fighters becomes too small and there is too little space to throw a hook at the opponent’s head. Elbows can also be utilized to great effect as blocks or defenses against, for example, spring knees, side body knees, body kicks or punches.

Kicking (Te)[]

English	Thai	Romanization	IPA
Straight Kick	เตะตรง	Te trong	[tèʔ troŋ]
Roundhouse Kick	เตะตัด	Te tat	[tèʔ tàt]
Diagonal Kick	เตะเฉียง	Te chiang	[tèʔ tɕʰǐəŋ]
Half-Shin, Half-Knee Kick	เตะครึ่งแข้งครึ่งเข่า	Te khrueng khaeng khrueng khao	[tèʔ kʰrɯ̂ŋ kʰɛ̂ŋ kʰrɯ̂ŋ kʰàw]
Spinning Heel Kick	เตะกลับหลัง	Te klap lang	[tèʔ klàp lǎŋ]
Down Roundhouse Kick	เตะกด	Te kot	[tèʔ kòt]
Axe Heel Kick	เตะเข่า	Te khao	[tèʔ kʰàw]
Jump Kick	กระโดดเตะ	Kradot te	[kradòːt tèʔ]
Step-Up Kick	เขยิบเตะ	Khayoep te	[kʰa.jɤ̀p tèʔ]

The two most common kicks in Muay Thai are known as the thip (literally «foot jab») and the te chiang (kicking upwards in the shape of a triangle cutting under the arm and ribs) or angle kick. The Muay Thai angle kick uses a rotational movement of the e
ntire body and has been widely adopted by practitioners of other martial arts. It is superficially similar to a karate roundhouse kick, but omits the rotation of the lower leg from the knee used in other striking martial arts like most karate or taekwondo because like Kyukushin, Goju, and Kenpo it is done from a circular stance with the back leg just a little ways back in comparison to instinctive upper body fighting (boxing). This comes with the added risk of having the groin vulnerable at all times which is against Karate and Tae Kwon Do ideology in general except for brief moments after a kick for example. The angle kick draws its power entirely from the rotational movement of the body; the hips. It is thought many fighters use a counter rotation of the arms to intensify the power of this kick, but in actuality the power is from the hips and the arms are put in said position to get them out of the way.

If a roundhouse kick is attempted by the opponent, the Thai boxer will normally check the kick, that is he will block the kick with his own shin. Thai boxers are trained to always connect with the shin. The foot contains many fine bones and is much weaker. A fighter may end up hurting himself if he tries to strike with his foot or instep.

Muay Thai also includes other varieties of kicking such as the sidekick and spinning back kick. These kicks are used in bouts only by few fighters.

Knee (Ti khao)^[9][]

English	Thai	Romanization	IPA
Straight Knee Strike	เข่าตรง	Khao trong	[kʰàw troŋ]
Diagonal Knee Strike	เข่าเฉียง	Khao chiang	[kʰàw tɕʰǐəŋ]
Curving Knee Strike	เข่าโค้ง	Khao khong	[kʰàw kʰóːŋ]
Horizontal Knee Strike	เข่าตัด	Khao tat	[kʰàw tàt]
Knee Slap	เข่าตบ	Khao top	[kʰàw tòp]
Knee Bomb	เข่ายาว	Khao yao	[kʰàw jaːw]
Flying Knee	เข่าลอย	Khao loi	[kʰàw lɔːj]
Step-Up Knee Strike	เข่าเหยียบ	Khao yiap	[kʰàw jìəp]

• Khao dot [kʰàw dòːt] (Jumping knee strike) – the boxer jumps up on one leg and strikes with that leg’s knee.
• Khao loi (Flying knee strike) – the boxer takes a step(s), jumps forward and off one leg and strikes with that leg’s knee.
• Khao thon [kʰàw tʰoːn] (Straight knee strike) – the boxer simply thrusts it forward but not upwards, unless he is holding an opponents head down in a clinch and intend to knee upwards into the face. According to one written source, this technique is somewhat more recent than khao dot or khao loi.^{[citation needed]} Supposedly, when the Thai boxers fought with rope-bound hands rather than the modern boxing gloves, this particular technique was subject to potentially vicious cutting, slicing and sawing by an alert opponent who would block it or deflect it with the sharp «rope-glove» edges which are sometimes dipped in water to make the rope much stronger. This explanation also holds true for some of the following knee strikes below as well.

[edit]Foot-thrust (Thip)[]

The foot-thrust or literally «foot jab» is one of the techniques in Muay Thai. It is mainly used as a defensive technique to control distance or block attacks. Foot-thrusts should be thrown quickly but yet with enough force to knock an opponent off balance.

English	Thai	Romanization	IPA
Straight Foot-Thrust	ถีบตรง	Thip trong	[tʰìːp troŋ] [10]
Sideways Foot-Thrust	ถีบข้าง	Thip khang	[tʰìːp kʰâːŋ]
Reverse Foot-Thrust	ถีบกลับหลัง	Thip klap lang	[tʰìːp klàp lǎŋ]
Slapping Foot-Thrust	ถีบตบ	Thip top	[tʰìːp tòp]
Jumping Foot-Thrust	กระโดดถีบ	Kradot thip	[kradòːt tʰìːp]

[edit]Clinch & Neck Wrestling (Chap kho)[]

See also: Muay Thai clinchIn Western boxing the two fighters are separated when they clinch; in Muay Thai, however, they are not. It is often in the clinch where knee and elbow techniques are used. To strike and bind the opponent for both offensive and defensive purposes, small amounts of stand-up grappling are used in the clinch. The front clinch should be performed with the palm of one hand on the back of the other. There are three reasons why th
e fingers must not be intertwined. 1) In the ring fighters are wearing boxing gloves and cannot intertwine their fingers. 2) The Thai front clinch involves pressing the head of the opponent downwards, which is easier if the hands are locked behind the back of the head instead of behind the neck. Furthermore the arms should be putting as much pressure on the neck as possible. 3) A fighter may incur an injury to one or more fingers if they are intertwined, and it becomes more difficult to release the grip in order to quickly elbow the opponent’s head.

A correct clinch also involves the fighter’s forearms pressing against the opponent’s collar bone while the hands are around the opponent’s head rather than the opponent’s neck. The general way to get out of a clinch is to push the opponent’s head backwards or elbow them, as the clinch requires both participants to be very close to one another. Additionally, the non-dominant clincher can try to «swim» their arm underneath and inside the opponent’s clinch, establishing the previously non-dominant clincher as the dominant clincher.

Muay Thai has several other variants of the clinch or chap kho [tɕàp kʰɔː], including:

• arm clinch: One or both hands controls the inside of the defender’s arm(s) and where the second hand if free is in the front clinch position. This clinch is used to briefly control the opponent before applying a knee strike or throw
• side clinch: One arm passes around the front of the defender with the attacker’s shoulder pressed into the defender’s arm pit and the other arm passing round the back which allows the attacker to apply knee strikes to the defender’s back or to throw the defender readily.
• low clinch: Both controlling arms pass under the defender’s arms, which is generally used by the shorter of two opponents.
• swan-neck: One hand around the rear of the neck is used to briefly clinch an opponent before a strike.^{[citation needed]}

Defense against attacks[]

Defenses in Muay Thai are categorized into 6 groups:

• Blocking – defender’shard blocks to stop a strike in its path so preventing it reaching its target (e.g. the shin block described in more detail below)
• Redirection – defender’s soft parries to change the direction of a strike (e.g. a downwards tap to a jab) so that it misses the target
• Avoidance – moving a body part out of the way or range of a strike so the defender remains in range for a counter-strike. For example, the defender moves their front leg backwards to avoid the attacker’s low kick, then immediately counters with an angle kick. Or the defender might lay their head back from the attacker’s high angle kick, then counter-attacks with a side kick.
• Evasion – moving the body out of the way or range of a strike so the defender has to move close again to counter-attack, e.g. the defender jumping back from the attacker’s kicks
• Disruption – Pre-empting an attack e.g. with defender using disruptive techniques like jab, foot-thrust or low angle kick (to the inside of the attacker’s front leg) as the attacker attempts to close distance
• Anticipation – Defender catching a strike (e.g. catching an angle kick to the body) or countering it before it lands (e.g. defender’s low kick to the supporting leg below as the attacker initiates a high angle kick).

Punches and kicks[]

Defensively, the concept of «wall of defence» is used, in which shoulders, arms and legs are used to hinder the attacker from successfully executing techniques. Blocking is a critical element in Muay Thai and compounds the level of conditioning a successful practitioner must possess. Low and mid body roundhouse kicks are normally blocked with the upper portion of a raised shin. High body strikes are blocked with the forearm, glove, elbow or shin. Mid section roundhouse kicks can also be caught/trapped, allowing for a sweep or counter attack to the remaining leg of the opponent. Punches are blocked with an ordinary boxing guard and techniques similar, if not identical, to basic boxing technique. A common means of blocking a punch is using the hand on the same side as the oncoming punch. For example, if an orthodox fighter throws a jab (being the left hand), the defender will make a slight tap to redirect the punch’s angle with the right hand. The deflection is always as small and precise as possible to avoid unnecessary energy expenditure and return the hand to the guard as quickly as possible. Hooks are most often blocked with a motion most often described as «combing the hair», that is, raising the elbow forward and effectively shielding the head with the forearm, flexed biceps and shoulder. More advanced Muay Thai blocks are usually counters, used to damage the opponent to prevent another attack being made.

Conditioning[]

[3][4]A fighter punching a heavy bag in a training camp in Thailand.Like most competitive full contact fighting sports, Muay Thai has a heavy focus on body conditioning. Muay Thai is specifically designed to promote the level offitness and toughness required for ring competition. Training regimens include many staples of combat sport conditioning such as running, shadowboxing, rope jumping, body weight resistance exercises, medicine ball exercises, abdominal exercises, and in some cases weight training. Muay Thai practitioners typically applyNamman Muay liberally before and after their intense training sessions.

Training that is specific to a Muay Thai fighter includes training with coaches on Thai pads, focus mitts, heavy bag, and sparring. The daily training includes many rounds (3-5 minute periods broken up by a short rest, often 1–2 minutes) of these various methods of practice. Thai pad training is a cornerstone of Muay Thai conditioning which involves practicing punches, kicks, knees, and elbow strikes with a trainer wearing thick pads which cover the forearms and hands. These special pads are used to absorb the impact of the fighter’s strikes and allow the fighter to react to the attacks of the pad holder in an Alive manner. The trainer will often also wear a belly pad around the abdominal area so that the fighter can attack with straight kicks or knees to the body at anytime during the round.

Focus mitts are specific to training a fighter’s hand speed, punch combinations, timing, punching power, defense, and counter-punching and may also be used to practice elbow strikes. Heavy bag training is a conditioning and power exercise that reinforces the techniques practiced on the pads. Sparring is a means to test technique, skills, range, strategy, and timing against a partner. Sparring is often a light to medium contact exercise because competitive fighters on a full schedule are not advised to risk injury by sparring hard. Specific tactics and strategies can be trained with sparring including in close fighting, clinching and kneeing only, cutting off the ring, or using reach and distance to keep an aggressive fighter away.

Due to the rigorous training regimen (some Thai boxers fight almost every other week) professional Muay Thai fighters have relatively short careers in the ring. Many retire from competition to begin instructing the next generation of Thai fighters. Most professional Thai boxers come from the lower economic backgrounds, and the fight money (after the other parties get their cut) is sought as means of support for the fighters and their families. Very few higher economic strata Thais join the professional Muay Thai ranks; they usually either don’t practice the sport or practice it only as amateur Muay Thai boxers.

Rules[]

Muay Thai is practiced in many different countries and there are different rules depending on what country the fight is in and under what organization the fight is arranged. The following is a link to the rules section of the Sports Authority of Thailand.

Use in other martial arts or combat sports[]

Mixed Martial Arts[]

Muay Thai, like boxing and various forms of kickboxing, is recognised as a very effective striking base within MMA, and is very widely trained among MMA fighters. Fighters (some of whom have won titles) such asAnderson Silva, Wanderlei Silva, Mauricio Rua, Thiago Silva, Alistair Overeem, Jose Aldo, Paul Daley and Gina Carano among others are well known for their Thaiboxing backgrounds. Countless other mixed martial artists have trained in Muay Thai, and it is often taught at MMA gyms as is BJJ and Wrestling.

Many techniques associated with Muay Thai are often seen in MMA, such as punches, elbows, clinch fighting, leg kicks and knees.

In popular culture[]

Main article: Muay Thai in popular cultureInterest in Muay Thai has risen in the past ten years, due to the popularity of martial arts in film and television. The most notable practitioner of Muay Thai is martial arts sensation, Tony Jaa.

Muay Thai has been represented in quite a few fighting games as well. Jax Briggs from Mortal Kombat, Sagat and Adon from Street Fighter, Joe Higashi from King of Fighters, Bruce Irvin from Tekken, and Brad Burns from Virtua Fighter are all known to be practitioners of the martial arts. Muay Thai has also become popular in the movie industry with the release of Ong Bak 1 & 2, starring rising Muay Thai star Tony Jaa. «Chocolate» starring Yanin Vismistananda is another martial arts movie, which signifies Muay Thai’s rise in pop culture.

Muay Thai
Also called	Thai Boxing, Thai Kickboxing
Country of origin	Thailand
Focus	Punching, Striking, Kicking

Muay Thai (Thai: มวยไทย, RTGS: Muai Thai, IPA: [mūɛj tʰāj]) is a hard martial art from Thailand that uses stand-up striking along with various clinching techniques. It is similar to other Indochinese styles of kickboxing, namely pradal serey from Cambodia, tomoi from Malaysia, lethwei from Myanmar and Muay Lao from Laos. Descended from muay boran, Muay Thai is Thailand’s national sport.^{[1][2][3] [4]}

The word muay derives from the Sanskrit mavya and Thai comes from the word Tai. Muay Thai is referred to as the «Art of Eight Limbs» or the «Science Of Eight Limbs» because it makes use of punches, kicks, elbows and knee strikes, thus using eight «points of contact», as opposed to «two points» (fists) in Western boxing and «four points» (hands and feet) used in sport-oriented martial arts.^[5] A practitioner of Muay Thai is known as a nak muay. Western practitioners are sometimes called nak muay farang meaning foreign boxer.^[6]

History[]

Origins[]

Thailand is 800 years old starting in 1238 A.D. under the Kingdom of Sukhothai. The martial art can be traced back using records to 400 years ago in the former capital of Thailand known as Ayutthaya. Various forms of kickboxing have long been practiced throughout mainland Southeast Asia. Based on a combination of Chinese and Indian martial arts,^[8]. In Thailand, Muay Thai evolved from muay boran (ancient boxing), an unarmed combat method which would probably have been used by Siamese soldiers after losing their weapons in battle. Some believe that the ancient Siamese military created Muay Boran from the weapon-based art of krabi krabong but others contend that the two were merely developed alongside each other. Krabi krabong nevertheless was an important influence on Muay Boran and so Muay Thai as can be seen in several kicks, holds and the movements in the wai khru which have their origins in armed combat.

Muay Boran, and therefore Muay Thai, was originally called toi muay or simply muay. As well as being a practical fighting technique for use in actual warfare, muay became a sport in which the opponents fought in front of spectators who went to watch for entertainment. These muay contests gradually became an integral part of local festivals and celebrations, especially those held at temples. It was even used as entertainment for kings. Eventually, the previously bare-fisted fighters started wearing lengths of hemp rope around their hands and forearms. This type of match was ca

lled muay khat chueak (มวยคาดเชือก).

Muay gradually became a possible means of personal advancement as the nobility increasingly esteemed skillful practitioners of the art and invited selected fighters to come to live in the royal palace to teach muay to the staff of the royal household, soldiers, princes or the king’s personal guards.^{[citation needed]} This «royal muay» was called muay luang (มวยหลวง). Some time during the Ayutthaya period, a platoon of royal guards was established, whose duty was to protect king and the country. They were known as Krom Nak Muay («Muay Kick-Fighters’ Regiment»). This royal patronage of kick-muay continued through the reigns of Rama V and VII.

Modernization[]

Ascension of King Chulalongkorn (Rama V) to the throne in 1868 ushered in a golden age not only for muay but for the whole country of Thailand. Muay progressed greatly during the reign of Rama V as a direct result of the king’s personal interest in the art. The country was at peace and muay functioned as a means of physical exercise, self-defense, recreation, and personal advancement.^{[citation needed]} Masters of the art began teaching muay in training camps where students were provided with food and shelter. Trainees would be treated as one family and it was customary for students to adopt the camp’s name as their own surname. Scouts would be sent by the royal family to organize matches between different camps. King Rama the VII pushed for codified rules for Muay Thai, and they were put into place. Thailand’s first boxing ring was built in 1921 at Suan Kularp. Referees were introduced and rounds were now timed by kick. Fighters at the Lumpinee Kickboxing Stadium began wearing modern gloves during training and in boxing matches against foreigners. Rope-binding was still used in fights between Thais bu
t after the occurrence of a death in the ring, it was decided that fighters should wear gloves and cotton coverlets over the feet and ankles. It was also around this time that the term Muay Thai became commonly used while the older form of the style was referred to as muay boran. With the success of Muay Thai in the mixed martial arts, it has become the de facto style of choice for competitive stand-up fighters. As a result, western practitioners have incorporated much more powerful hand striking techniques from boxing although some Thai purists accuse them of diluting the art.

Nai Khanomtom[]

The most popular folklore regarding muay boran is that of Nai Khanomtom.

At the time of the fall of the ancient Siam capital of Ayutthaya in 1767, the invading Burmese troops rounded up thousands of Thais and took them to Burma as prisoners. Among them were a large number of Thai kickboxers, who were taken to the city of Ava.

In 1774, in the Burmese city of Rangoon, the Burmese King Hsinbyushin (known in Thai as «King Mangra») decided to organize a seven-day, seven-night religious festival in honor of Buddha’s relics. The festivities included many forms of entertainment, such as the costume plays called likay, comedies and farces, and sword-fighting matches. At one point, King Hsinbyushin wanted to see how muay boran would compare to the Burmese art Lethwei^{[citation needed]}. Nai Khanomtom was selected to fight against the Burmese champion. The boxing ring was set up in front of the throne and Nai Khanomtom did a traditional Wai Kru pre-fight dance, to pay his respects to his teachers and ancestors, as well as the spectators, dancing around his opponent. This amazed and perplexed the Burmese people, who thought it was black magic. When the fight began, Nai Khanomtom charged out, using punches, kicks, elbows, and knees to pummel his opponent until he collapsed.

However the Burmese referee said the Burmese champion was too distracted by the kick, and declared the knockout invalid. The King then asked if Nai Khanomtom would fight nine other Burmese champions to prove himself. He agreed and fought them all, one after the other with no rest periods in between. His last opponent was a great kickboxing teacher from Rakhine. Nai Khanomtom mangled him by his kicks and no one else dared to challenge him.

King Mangra was so impressed that he allegedly remarked, «Every part of the Thai is blessed with venom. Even with his bare hands, he can fell nine or ten opponents. But his Lord was incompetent and lost the country to the enemy. If he would have been any good, there was no way the City of Ayutthaya would ever have fallen.»^{[citation needed]}

King Mangra granted Nai Khanomtom freedom along with either riches or two beautiful Burmese wives. Nai Khanomtom chose the wives as he said that money was easier to find. He then departed with his wives for Siam. Other variations of this story had him also winning the release of his fellow Thai prisoners. His feat is celebrated every March 17 as Boxer’s Day or National Muay Boran Day in his honor and that of muay boran’s.

Today, some have wrongly attributed the legend of Nai Khanomtom to King Naresuan, who was once taken by the Burmese. However, Nai Khanomtom and King Naresuan were almost two centuries apart.

Techniques[]

[1][2]Muay Thai match in Bangkok, Thailand.Formal Muay Thai techniques are divided into two groups: mae mai or major techniques and luk mai or minor techniques. Muay Thai is often a fighting art of attrition, where opponents exchange blows with one another. This is certainly the case with traditional stylists in Thailand, but is a less popular form of fighting in the contemporary world fighting circuit where the Thai style of exchanging blow for blow is no longer favorable. Almost all techniques in Muay Thai use the entire body movement, rotating the hip with each kick, punch, elbow and block.

Punching (Chok)[]

English	Thai	Romanization	IPA
Cross (boxing)	หมัดตรง	Mat trong	[màt troŋ]
Hook	หมัดเหวี่ยงสั้น	Mat wiang san	[màt wìəŋ sân]
Swing	หมัดเหวี่ยงยาว	Mat wiang yao	[màt wìəŋ jaːw]
Spinning Backfist	หมัดเหวี่ยงกลับ	Mat wiang klap	[màt wìəŋ klàp]
Uppercut	หมัดเสย/หมัดสอยดาว	Mat soei/Mat soi dao	[màt sɤ̌j], [màt sɔ̌j daːw]
Cobra	กระโดดชก	Kradot chok	[kradòːt tɕʰók]

The punch techniques in Muay Thai were originally quite limited being crosses and a long (or lazy) circular strike made with a straight (but not locked) arm and landing with the heel of the palm. Cross-fertilization with Western boxing and western martial arts mean the full range of western boxing punches are now used: lead jab, straight/cross, hook, uppercut, shovel and corkscrew punches and overhands as well as hammer fists and back fists.

As a tactic, body punching is used less in Muay Thai than most other striking martial arts to avoid exposing the attacker’s head to counter strikes from knees or elbows. To utilize the range of targeting points, in keeping with the center line theory, the fighter can use either the Western or Thai stance which allows for either long range or short range attacks to be undertaken effectively without compromising guard.

Elbow (Ti sok)[]

The elbow can be used in several ways as a striking weapon: horizontal, diagonal-upwards, diagonal-downwards, uppercut, downward, backward-spinning and flying. From the side, it can be used as either a finishing move or as a way to cut the opponent’s eyebrow so that blood might block his vision. The diagonal elbows are faster than the other forms, but are less powerful.

English	Thai	Romanization	IPA
Elbow Slash	ศอกตี	Sok ti	[sɔ̀ːk tiː]
Horizontal Elbow	ศอกตัด	Sok tat	[sɔ̀ːk tàt]
Uppercut Elbow	ศอกงัด	Sok ngat	[sɔ̀ːk ŋát]
Forward Elbow Thrust	ศอกพุ่ง	Sok phung	[sɔ̀ːk pʰûŋ]
Reverse Horizontal Elbow	ศอกเหวี่ยงกลับ	Sok wiang klap	[sɔ̀ːk wìəŋ klàp]
Spinning Elbow	ศอกกลับ	Sok klap	[sɔ̀ːk klàp]
Elbow Chop	ศอกสับ	Sok sap	[sɔ̀ːk sàp]
Double Elbow Chop	ศอกกลับคู่	Sok klap khu	[sɔ̀ːk klàp kʰûː]
Mid-Air Elbow Strike	กระโดดศอก	Kradot sok	[kradòːt sɔ̀ːk]

There is also a distinct difference between a single elbow and a follow-up elbow. The single elbow is an independent move, whereas a follow-up elbow is the second strike from the same arm, being a hook or straight punch first with an elbow follow-up. Such elbows, and most other elbow strikes, are used when the distance between fighters becomes too small and there is too little space to throw a hook at the opponent’s head. Elbows can also be utilized to great effect as blocks or defenses against, for example, spring knees, side body knees, body kicks or punches.

Kicking (Te)[]

English	Thai	Romanization	IPA
Straight Kick	เตะตรง	Te trong	[tèʔ troŋ]
Roundhouse Kick	เตะตัด	Te tat	[tèʔ tàt]
Diagonal Kick	เตะเฉียง	Te chiang	[tèʔ tɕʰǐəŋ]
Half-Shin, Half-Knee Kick	เตะครึ่งแข้งครึ่งเข่า	Te khrueng khaeng khrueng khao	[tèʔ kʰrɯ̂ŋ kʰɛ̂ŋ kʰrɯ̂ŋ kʰàw]
Spinning Heel Kick	เตะกลับหลัง	Te klap lang	[tèʔ klàp lǎŋ]
Down Roundhouse Kick	เตะกด	Te kot	[tèʔ kòt]
Axe Heel Kick	เตะเข่า	Te khao	[tèʔ kʰàw]
Jump Kick	กระโดดเตะ	Kradot te	[kradòːt tèʔ]
Step-Up Kick	เขยิบเตะ	Khayoep te	[kʰa.jɤ̀p tèʔ]

The two most common kicks in Muay Thai are known as the thip (literally «foot jab») and the te chiang (kicking upwards in the shape of a triangle cutting under the arm and ribs) or angle kick. The Muay Thai angle kick uses a rotational movement of the e
ntire body and has been widely adopted by practitioners of other martial arts. It is superficially similar to a karate roundhouse kick, but omits the rotation of the lower leg from the knee used in other striking martial arts like most karate or taekwondo because like Kyukushin, Goju, and Kenpo it is done from a circular stance with the back leg just a little ways back in comparison to instinctive upper body fighting (boxing). This comes with the added risk of having the groin vulnerable at all times which is against Karate and Tae Kwon Do ideology in general except for brief moments after a kick for example. The angle kick draws its power entirely from the rotational movement of the body; the hips. It is thought many fighters use a counter rotation of the arms to intensify the power of this kick, but in actuality the power is from the hips and the arms are put in said position to get them out of the way.

If a roundhouse kick is attempted by the opponent, the Thai boxer will normally check the kick, that is he will block the kick with his own shin. Thai boxers are trained to always connect with the shin. The foot contains many fine bones and is much weaker. A fighter may end up hurting himself if he tries to strike with his foot or instep.

Muay Thai also includes other varieties of kicking such as the sidekick and spinning back kick. These kicks are used in bouts only by few fighters.

Knee (Ti khao)^[9][]

English	Thai	Romanization	IPA
Straight Knee Strike	เข่าตรง	Khao trong	[kʰàw troŋ]
Diagonal Knee Strike	เข่าเฉียง	Khao chiang	[kʰàw tɕʰǐəŋ]
Curving Knee Strike	เข่าโค้ง	Khao khong	[kʰàw kʰóːŋ]
Horizontal Knee Strike	เข่าตัด	Khao tat	[kʰàw tàt]
Knee Slap	เข่าตบ	Khao top	[kʰàw tòp]
Knee Bomb	เข่ายาว	Khao yao	[kʰàw jaːw]
Flying Knee	เข่าลอย	Khao loi	[kʰàw lɔːj]
Step-Up Knee Strike	เข่าเหยียบ	Khao yiap	[kʰàw jìəp]

• Khao dot [kʰàw dòːt] (Jumping knee strike) – the boxer jumps up on one leg and strikes with that leg’s knee.
• Khao loi (Flying knee strike) – the boxer takes a step(s), jumps forward and off one leg and strikes with that leg’s knee.
• Khao thon [kʰàw tʰoːn] (Straight knee strike) – the boxer simply thrusts it forward but not upwards, unless he is holding an opponents head down in a clinch and intend to knee upwards into the face. According to one written source, this technique is somewhat more recent than khao dot or khao loi.^{[citation needed]} Supposedly, when the Thai boxers fought with rope-bound hands rather than the modern boxing gloves, this particular technique was subject to potentially vicious cutting, slicing and sawing by an alert opponent who would block it or deflect it with the sharp «rope-glove» edges which are sometimes dipped in water to make the rope much stronger. This explanation also holds true for some of the following knee strikes below as well.

[edit]Foot-thrust (Thip)[]

The foot-thrust or literally «foot jab» is one of the techniques in Muay Thai. It is mainly used as a defensive technique to control distance or block attacks. Foot-thrusts should be thrown quickly but yet with enough force to knock an opponent off balance.

English	Thai	Romanization	IPA
Straight Foot-Thrust	ถีบตรง	Thip trong	[tʰìːp troŋ] [10]
Sideways Foot-Thrust	ถีบข้าง	Thip khang	[tʰìːp kʰâːŋ]
Reverse Foot-Thrust	ถีบกลับหลัง	Thip klap lang	[tʰìːp klàp lǎŋ]
Slapping Foot-Thrust	ถีบตบ	Thip top	[tʰìːp tòp]
Jumping Foot-Thrust	กระโดดถีบ	Kradot thip	[kradòːt tʰìːp]

[edit]Clinch & Neck Wrestling (Chap kho)[]

See also: Muay Thai clinchIn Western boxing the two fighters are separated when they clinch; in Muay Thai, however, they are not. It is often in the clinch where knee and elbow techniques are used. To strike and bind the opponent for both offensive and defensive purposes, small amounts of stand-up grappling are used in the clinch. The front clinch should be performed with the palm of one hand on the back of the other. There are three reasons why th
e fingers must not be intertwined. 1) In the ring fighters are wearing boxing gloves and cannot intertwine their fingers. 2) The Thai front clinch involves pressing the head of the opponent downwards, which is easier if the hands are locked behind the back of the head instead of behind the neck. Furthermore the arms should be putting as much pressure on the neck as possible. 3) A fighter may incur an injury to one or more fingers if they are intertwined, and it becomes more difficult to release the grip in order to quickly elbow the opponent’s head.

A correct clinch also involves the fighter’s forearms pressing against the opponent’s collar bone while the hands are around the opponent’s head rather than the opponent’s neck. The general way to get out of a clinch is to push the opponent’s head backwards or elbow them, as the clinch requires both participants to be very close to one another. Additionally, the non-dominant clincher can try to «swim» their arm underneath and inside the opponent’s clinch, establishing the previously non-dominant clincher as the dominant clincher.

Muay Thai has several other variants of the clinch or chap kho [tɕàp kʰɔː], including:

• arm clinch: One or both hands controls the inside of the defender’s arm(s) and where the second hand if free is in the front clinch position. This clinch is used to briefly control the opponent before applying a knee strike or throw
• side clinch: One arm passes around the front of the defender with the attacker’s shoulder pressed into the defender’s arm pit and the other arm passing round the back which allows the attacker to apply knee strikes to the defender’s back or to throw the defender readily.
• low clinch: Both controlling arms pass under the defender’s arms, which is generally used by the shorter of two opponents.
• swan-neck: One hand around the rear of the neck is used to briefly clinch an opponent before a strike.^{[citation needed]}

Defense against attacks[]

Defenses in Muay Thai are categorized into 6 groups:

• Blocking – defender’shard blocks to stop a strike in its path so preventing it reaching its target (e.g. the shin block described in more detail below)
• Redirection – defender’s soft parries to change the direction of a strike (e.g. a downwards tap to a jab) so that it misses the target
• Avoidance – moving a body part out of the way or range of a strike so the defender remains in range for a counter-strike. For example, the defender moves their front leg backwards to avoid the attacker’s low kick, then immediately counters with an angle kick. Or the defender might lay their head back from the attacker’s high angle kick, then counter-attacks with a side kick.
• Evasion – moving the body out of the way or range of a strike so the defender has to move close again to counter-attack, e.g. the defender jumping back from the attacker’s kicks
• Disruption – Pre-empting an attack e.g. with defender using disruptive techniques like jab, foot-thrust or low angle kick (to the inside of the attacker’s front leg) as the attacker attempts to close distance
• Anticipation – Defender catching a strike (e.g. catching an angle kick to the body) or countering it before it lands (e.g. defender’s low kick to the supporting leg below as the attacker initiates a high angle kick).

Punches and kicks[]

Defensively, the concept of «wall of defence» is used, in which shoulders, arms and legs are used to hinder the attacker from successfully executing techniques. Blocking is a critical element in Muay Thai and compounds the level of conditioning a successful practitioner must possess. Low and mid body roundhouse kicks are normally blocked with the upper portion of a raised shin. High body strikes are blocked with the forearm, glove, elbow or shin. Mid section roundhouse kicks can also be caught/trapped, allowing for a sweep or counter attack to the remaining leg of the opponent. Punches are blocked with an ordinary boxing guard and techniques similar, if not identical, to basic boxing technique. A common means of blocking a punch is using the hand on the same side as the oncoming punch. For example, if an orthodox fighter throws a jab (being the left hand), the defender will make a slight tap to redirect the punch’s angle with the right hand. The deflection is always as small and precise as possible to avoid unnecessary energy expenditure and return the hand to the guard as quickly as possible. Hooks are most often blocked with a motion most often described as «combing the hair», that is, raising the elbow forward and effectively shielding the head with the forearm, flexed biceps and shoulder. More advanced Muay Thai blocks are usually counters, used to damage the opponent to prevent another attack being made.

Conditioning[]

[3][4]A fighter punching a heavy bag in a training camp in Thailand.Like most competitive full contact fighting sports, Muay Thai has a heavy focus on body conditioning. Muay Thai is specifically designed to promote the level offitness and toughness required for ring competition. Training regimens include many staples of combat sport conditioning such as running, shadowboxing, rope jumping, body weight resistance exercises, medicine ball exercises, abdominal exercises, and in some cases weight training. Muay Thai practitioners typically applyNamman Muay liberally before and after their intense training sessions.

Training that is specific to a Muay Thai fighter includes training with coaches on Thai pads, focus mitts, heavy bag, and sparring. The daily training includes many rounds (3-5 minute periods broken up by a short rest, often 1–2 minutes) of these various methods of practice. Thai pad training is a cornerstone of Muay Thai conditioning which involves practicing punches, kicks, knees, and elbow strikes with a trainer wearing thick pads which cover the forearms and hands. These special pads are used to absorb the impact of the fighter’s strikes and allow the fighter to react to the attacks of the pad holder in an Alive manner. The trainer will often also wear a belly pad around the abdominal area so that the fighter can attack with straight kicks or knees to the body at anytime during the round.

Focus mitts are specific to training a fighter’s hand speed, punch combinations, timing, punching power, defense, and counter-punching and may also be used to practice elbow strikes. Heavy bag training is a conditioning and power exercise that reinforces the techniques practiced on the pads. Sparring is a means to test technique, skills, range, strategy, and timing against a partner. Sparring is often a light to medium contact exercise because competitive fighters on a full schedule are not advised to risk injury by sparring hard. Specific tactics and strategies can be trained with sparring including in close fighting, clinching and kneeing only, cutting off the ring, or using reach and distance to keep an aggressive fighter away.

Due to the rigorous training regimen (some Thai boxers fight almost every other week) professional Muay Thai fighters have relatively short careers in the ring. Many retire from competition to begin instructing the next generation of Thai fighters. Most professional Thai boxers come from the lower economic backgrounds, and the fight money (after the other parties get their cut) is sought as means of support for the fighters and their families. Very few higher economic strata Thais join the professional Muay Thai ranks; they usually either don’t practice the sport or practice it only as amateur Muay Thai boxers.

Rules[]

Muay Thai is practiced in many different countries and there are different rules depending on what country the fight is in and under what organization the fight is arranged. The following is a link to the rules section of the Sports Authority of Thailand.

Use in other martial arts or combat sports[]

Mixed Martial Arts[]

Muay Thai, like boxing and various forms of kickboxing, is recognised as a very effective striking base within MMA, and is very widely trained among MMA fighters. Fighters (some of whom have won titles) such asAnderson Silva, Wanderlei Silva, Mauricio Rua, Thiago Silva, Alistair Overeem, Jose Aldo, Paul Daley and Gina Carano among others are well known for their Thaiboxing backgrounds. Countless other mixed martial artists have trained in Muay Thai, and it is often taught at MMA gyms as is BJJ and Wrestling.

Many techniques associated with Muay Thai are often seen in MMA, such as punches, elbows, clinch fighting, leg kicks and knees.

In popular culture[]

Main article: Muay Thai in popular cultureInterest in Muay Thai has risen in the past ten years, due to the popularity of martial arts in film and television. The most notable practitioner of Muay Thai is martial arts sensation, Tony Jaa.

Muay Thai has been represented in quite a few fighting games as well. Jax Briggs from Mortal Kombat, Sagat and Adon from Street Fighter, Joe Higashi from King of Fighters, Bruce Irvin from Tekken, and Brad Burns from Virtua Fighter are all known to be practitioners of the martial arts. Muay Thai has also become popular in the movie industry with the release of Ong Bak 1 & 2, starring rising Muay Thai star Tony Jaa. «Chocolate» starring Yanin Vismistananda is another martial arts movie, which signifies Muay Thai’s rise in pop culture.

Тайский бокс (Муай-тай) — древнее боевое искусство Таиланда.

Термин «муай тай» переводится как «поединок свободных» или «свободный бой». Термин официально принят в 1912 году.

В современном муай тай можно наносить удары кулаками, ступнями и голенями ног, локтями и коленями — из-за этого муай тай называют «боем восьмируких». От каратэ или ушу муай тай отличает отсутствие формальных комплексов (ката, таолу), их заменяют базовые связки из двух-трех ударов, спарринг и работа на мешках.

Считается, что Муай Тай берет свое начало свыше 2000 лет назад в тайской народности ао лай, и этот стиль рукопашного боя первоначально был известен как пахуют.

Легенда утверждает, что пахуют был создан в пещере близ города Суваннапум пятью великими мастерами: Кру Кун Плааем, Кру Ламом, Кру Фонгом, Кру Сри Трейратом, и дочерью Кру Кун Плаая — Кру Мэ Буа.

Столетиями тайская армия изучала эти приемы боя. Военный изучал и тренировался столько, сколько он был в армии. Для армии это было средство активного ближнего боя, боевое искусство с древнейших полей сражения.

Первые соревнования по пахуюту в конце X века организовал правитель города Аутонг — Пра Панса. Это зрелище было задумано им как развлечение и одновременно азартная игра для всего населения. Поединки носили дружественный характер, убийство соперника не допускалось. А сами соревнования стали называть «муай» («схватка, поединок») или «панан муай» («схватка на результат которой делают ставки»).

Так постепенно Муай Тай стало перемещаться с полей сражения на ринг.

Муай Тай был всегда любим тайским народом, но как и любой спорт, были времена когда он был наиболее популярен. Во времена правления Короля Рама 5, многие матчи по Муай Тай были организованы королевской властью, а победители получали военные титулы от Короля, в основном это были бойцы из королевской гвардии.

Во времена короля Рама 6, в Муай Тай начали использовать ринг, окруженный веревками, а отсчет времени производился по часам. До этого времени отсчет времени производился по плавающему по воде проколотому плоду кокосовой пальмы. Когда плод тонул, барабан извещал о конце раунда.

Во времена Короля-тигра руки и предплечья бойца Муай Тай обматывались полосками из шкуры лошади. Это было нужно, во первых, для защиты боксера, а во вторых для более сильного удара. Позднее стали использовать пеньковые веревки или обычные хлопковые ленты.

Муай Тай много веков был излюбленным видом спорта для тайцев. Любой мог изучать Муай Тай, будь то простой человек или сам король. Муай Тай был частью школьной программы до 1920 г., пока это не было отменено. Люди, однако, продолжали изучать Муай Тай в клубах и спортзалах, как и сегодня.

В 1930 г. произошли кардинальные изменения в Муай Тай. Жесткий характер Муай Тай был изменен под международные правила бокса. Вместо обвязывания рук веревкой, бои стали проводиться в перчатках. Были запрещены броски типа дзюдо и удары в пах. Это сократило число травм и сделало Муай Тай менее жестким. С того времени определились основные положения в правилах и инструкциях Муай Тай, которые существуют и используются и по ныне.

Современный Тайский бокс

Тайский бокс — один из наиболее приближенных к реальному поединку спортивных единоборств.

Тайский бокс отличается от обычного кикбоксинга наличием ударов локтями и коленями, захватов и бросков. Тайские боксеры являются одними из наиболее подготовленных к жестким контактным поединкам бойцами.

В муай тай используется чрезвычайно эффективная, отличная от всех других единоборств, техника нанесения ударов ногами, локтями и коленями.

Тайский бокс в России и странах СНГ появился сравнительно недавно — примерно в начале 90-х гг. Однако на сегодняшний день он занимает прочные позиции среди единоборств, и с каждым годом число его поклонников растет.

Различают: тайский бокс профессиональный и любительский. Любительский тайский бокс отличается от профессионального более мягкими правилами, количеством защитной экипировки, а также тактикой ведения поединка. Немаловажным обстоятельством популярности тайского бокса является возможность регулярно участвовать в соревнованиях различного уровня — от городских до чемпионатов мира и Европы, выполнить нормативы мастера спорта по тайскому боксу.

В прикладном аспекте тайский бокс отличает простота и эффективность. Тайский бокс — жесткий вид спорта, но отнюдь не жестокий. Основа подготовки тайского боксера — поединок в различных формах: условные и вольные бои (спарринги), а так же снарядная работа, наполняющая изученную технику муай тай силой и скоростью. В тайском боксе широко используются протекторы, которые в сочетании с грамотной методикой преподавания сводят к минимуму риск получения травмы.

Схема типичной тренировки в муай тай выглядит следующим образом: разминка — множество трехминутных раундов с использованием всех типов ударов; работа на снарядах и отработка техники с тренером; силовые упражнения (особенно популярны отжимания в упоре, укрепление мышц брюшного пресса, вращение корпуса) и растяжки. Особое внимание уделяется психологической подготовке и изучению наиболее уязвимых мест человеческого тела.

Тайский бокс — стройная система, позволяющая человеку в максимально короткие сроки овладеть техникой, тактикой, а также рядом физических и психологических качеств, необходимых для успешного ведения поединка.

Ссылки

• Официальный сайт Максима Слипченко — сайт заслуженного мастера спорта Украины по таиландскому боксу
• Правила соревнований по тайскому боксу среди любителей
• Muay Thai
• История тайского бокса
• Тайский бокс — сайт Чемпиона Мира — Максима Неледвы
• История тайского бокса на сайте Краснодарской Федерации Тайского Бокса.
• Шехов, Владимир Геннадьевич Тайский бокс в свое удовольствие, Харвест, АСТ, 2000, 2002

Русский[править]

Морфологические и синтаксические свойства[править]

падеж	ед. ч.	мн. ч.
Им.	муа̀й-та́й	муа̀й-та́й
Р.	муа̀й-та́й	муа̀й-та́й
Д.	муа̀й-та́й	муа̀й-та́й
В.	муа̀й-та́й	муа̀й-та́й
Тв.	муа̀й-та́й	муа̀й-та́й
Пр.	муа̀й-та́й	муа̀й-та́й

му—а̀й-та́й

Существительное, неодушевлённое, мужской род, несклоняемое (тип склонения 0 по классификации А. А. Зализняка).

Корень: -муай-; корень: -тай-.

Произношение[править]

• МФА: [mʊˌaɪ̯ ˈtaɪ̯]

Семантические свойства[править]

Значение[править]

1. то же, что тайский бокс ◆ Отсутствует пример употребления (см. рекомендации).

Синонимы[править]

Антонимы[править]

Гиперонимы[править]

Гипонимы[править]

Родственные слова[править]

Ближайшее родство

Этимология[править]

От тайск. มวยไทย (muai-tai).

Фразеологизмы и устойчивые сочетания[править]

Перевод[править]

Список переводов

Библиография[править]

• Шагалова Е. Н. Словарь новейших иностранных слов (конец XX — начало XXI вв.): более 3000 слов и словосочетаний. — М. : АСТ: Астрель, 2010. — 943, [1] с. — (Biblio). — ISBN 978-5-17-061488-2, ISBN 978-5-17-061488-2.

Для улучшения этой статьи желательно: Добавить пример словоупотребления для значения с помощью {{пример}} Добавить синонимы в секцию «Семантические свойства» Добавить гиперонимы в секцию «Семантические свойства» Добавить хотя бы один перевод в секцию «Перевод»