Activities and things to do: Thai boxing
Watching and practising Thai boxing (Muay Thai) in Krabi
MUAY Thai (Thai boxing, or Thai kick boxing) is Thailand's national sport. It is a self-defence technique that was developed and tested in battle by the ancient warriors of the kingdom of Siam. A combination of kickboxing and stand-up grappling called clinching, it is often referred to as the ‘art of the eight limbs’ (the arms, elbows, legs and knees, all of which are used to strike the opponent).
It is the oldest known style of kickboxing and the most deadly and effective. An adult Thai boxer will usually weigh not more than 55kg, yet again and again when put up against opponents skilled in other martial arts, the Muay Thai fighter has come out on top.
Training is intensive and begins young, at six or seven years old, with a boxer’s first fight taking place at around age eight. Their dream, aside from earning money, is to fight in the legendary Bangkok stadiums, Lumpini and Ratchadamnoen, a glory reserved only for a few and watched on television every week by millions of Thai fans.
Ao Nang Krabi Stadium in Nopparat Thara puts on regular Thai boxing bouts on a smaller scale, every Friday night. If you would like to see this astonishing sport live, this is the place to come in Krabi. Matches are all about spectacle: a complex dance ceremony is performed before each fight to pay respect to the combattants' teachers and to the guardian spirit of Thai boxing.
However, they are not 'for show' - they are real fights, regularly attended by local Thai fans, albeit at a lower level than you will find in the Bangkok stadiums. The only concession to tourism is the price tag: tickets for foreigners cost 600 - 1000 Baht, but for this you will see up to 5 or 6 fights.
Rumours of a training camp open to foreigners interested in learning the techniques of the sport have abounded for the last few years, but this has yet to materialise. The closest Muay Thai training camp open to foreigners is currently located on Lanta Island, to the south of Krabi Province.
To commemorate the 5th anniversary of the Indian Ocean tsunami that devastated the coast of Krabi on December 26, 2004, The Sriphong Phukaoluan Foundation has produced a DVD to raise funds to sponsor children orphaned in the disaster.
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