Information AboutMuay Thai |
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It is the national sport of Thailand. Traditional Muay Thai has a long history in Thailand as a martial art used by the military. The Military style of Muay Thai is called '' Lerdrit '', while today's "Sport Muay Thai" slightly varies from the original art and uses Kick s and Punches in a ring and with gloves similar to those used in western Boxing . Muay Thai is referred to as "The Science of Eight Limbs", as the Hands , Feet , Elbows , and Knees are all used extensively in this art. A master practitioner of Muay Thai thus has the ability to execute Strikes using eight points of contact, as opposed to the four points (fists, feet) in many other forms of Martial Arts . This effectively gives the practitioner the ability to debilitate opponents with any combination of the eight limbs. TERMINOLOGY
TECHNIQUES The basic offensive techniques in Muay Thai use (sok) and Knee (kao) techniques to gain a distinct advantage in fighting. Two Muay Thai techniques were adopted by fighters from other martial arts: The Thai low Kick and the Thai Roundhouse Kick . They are actually variations of the same kick, but hit at different heights. The low kick uses a rotational movement of the entire body to hit the opponent's outer thigh or side of knee with the shin. When not properly defended against, this technique often leads to the end of the fight, as the opponent has great difficulty standing after a few powerful low-kicks. The Thai roundhouse kick is also unique and was adapted for its efficiency. The kick is carried out with a straight leg and the entire body rotating from the hip, which is "locked" right before the leg makes contact to the opponent. At close ranges, Thai boxers strike with the shin; at longer ranges, the foot makes contact. Some Knee Techniques ("'' Kao ''")
Almost all techniques in Muay Thai use the entire body movement, rotating the hip with each kick, punch, and block. The rotation of the hips in Muay Thai techniques, and intensive focus on "core muscles" (such as Abdominal Muscles and surrounding muscles) is very distinctive and is what sets Muay Thai apart from other styles of martial arts. During a competition, the participants perform a lengthy ritual and ceremony before the fight ( Wai Khru Ram Muay ). The ritual is both for religious reasons and as a stretching warm-up. CONDITIONING 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 of Fitness 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 . 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 , Kick s, 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. The trainer will often also wear a belly pad around the abdominal area so that the fighter can attack with straight kicks 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, counter-punching and are also 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. Muay Thai has demonstrated its effectiveness against other martial arts in a ring setting, many times, in Thailand and internationally. Due to the rigorous fighting and training regimen (some Thai boxers fight almost every other week) professional Muay Thai fighters have relatively short careers in the ring. 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 practice the sport as amateur Muay Thai boxers. HISTORY Although Muay Thai is considered by some to be a derivation of a general indigenous martial art style native to southeast Asia, it was the first to be popularized outside of southeast Asia. Traditionally in the past, Muay Thai was used as entertainment to kings. It is thought by some sources that gloves were made out of wrapped Twine , Tar , and broken pieces of Glass to ensure a Blood y event, however it is still a subject of debate. Nai Khanomtom A very famous fighter was Nai Khanomtom. Around 1774 , he was captured along with other Thai prisoners, either in a skirmish or at the fall of the ancient capital of Siam (Thailand's name at that time) of Ayutthaya. He was brought to Rangoon in Burma , where the Burmese king Mangra was holding a religious festival in honor of Buddha 's Relic s. The festivities included many forms of entertainment. King Mangra was reported to be curious to see how the various fighting styles of Burma and other countries would compare. At one point, he wanted to see how Muay Thai (or Muay Boran) would compare to the Burmese art (either Parma (?) or Lethwei (?)). Nai Khanomtom was selected to fight against the Burmese champion. Nai Khanomtom did a Wai Kru ( Wai Khru Ram Muay ) pre-fight dance which puzzled all of the Burmese. When the fight began, he charged out and using punches, kicks, elbows, and knees, quickly pummelled the Burmese. The Referee was reported to have stated that the Burmese opponent was distracted by the Wai Kru, so the knockout was 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. The last Burmese was reputed to be a great boxing teacher. Nai Khanomtom defeated them all in a superior fashion. King Mangra was so impressed that he remarked, "Every part of the Thai is blessed with Venom . Even with his bare hands, he can fell nine or ten opponents. As his lord master was incompetent, the country was lost to the enemy. If his lord were any good, there was no way the City of Ayutthaya would fall." He granted Nai Khanomtom the promised 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 (Thailand). 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 Thai Day" in his honor and that of Muay Thai's. Kickboxing Muay Thai, along with Savate , Karate , and Tae Kwon Do , heavily influenced the development of Kickboxing in Japan, Europe, and North America. However, unlike Muay Thai, many kickboxing competitions do not allow Elbow Strikes , Knee Strikes , and Kick s below the waist. Mixed Martial Arts Starting in the 1990s, Muay Thai has enjoyed a boost in popularity worldwide as it has been very effective in Mixed Martial Arts fights, such as those held by the Pride Fighting Championship and Ultimate Fighting Championship . Mixed Martial Artists such as Marco Ruas (of Ruas Vale Tudo ) and Wanderlei Silva and Murilo "Ninja" Rua (of the Chute Boxe Academy ) have combined many striking elements of Muay Thai with Grappling , Submission , and Choking elements from Judo , Wrestling , or Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu into a Hybrid Synthesis that has been highly effective in defeating practitioners of "pure" martial arts. Other fighters that have used Muay Thai as their primary style in mixed martial arts include Duane "Bang" Ludwig , Yves Edwards and Spencer Cooper . Shoot-fighters and Professional Wrestler s who have trained and influenced by Muay Thai include Satoru Sayama (the original Tiger Mask and founder of Shooto ) and Yoshiaki Fujiwara . MEDIA DEPICTION Recently the films '''' demonstrates some techniques of the older style of Muay Thai - Muay Boran and '' Tom-Yum-Goong '' illustrates the fighting style of the Thai Royal Bodyguards (Jaturongkabaht, circa 1400-1700s) - Muay Koshasan (Elephant Boxing style). Muay Koshasan is also known as Muay Chang Tumlai Roang - (Smashing Elephant Boxing style) in that it emphasizes a lot of throwing, crushing, and breaking of joints and limbs. The film ''Kickboxer'' starring Jean Claude Van Damme was a film set in Thailand and based on the sport of Muay Thai. Van Damme's portrayal in this film should not be taken as an accurate depiction of Muay Thai. The film ''Moo Thai'' starring Jason Willis is set in Evansville, Indiana, about one of the best upcoming Thai fighters in 2006. The Video Game characters Sagat and Adon ('' Street Fighter ''), Joe Higashi ('' Fatal Fury ''), King ('' Art Of Fighting ''), R.A.X. Coswell ('' Eternal Champions ''), Zack ('' Dead Or Alive ''), Bruce Irvin ('' Tekken ''), and Brad Burns ('' Virtua Fighter '') are Muay Thai fighters. Vanessa (Virtual Fighter) uses Muay Thai as an alternate stance in addition to her standard Vale Tudo move set in Virtua Fighter 4 . Jax (Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance) also uses a watered-down form of the style. NOTABLE FIGURES IN MUAY THAI SEE ALSO
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