Traditional Thai boxing goes back hundreds of years and has been an important part of the country’s history. Many people are surprised that Thais, a notoriously peaceful people, excel at this beautifully brutal sport. The reason they do so is that for hundreds of years the survival of their nation depended on it.With the interest in Muay Thai growing fast, martial-art schools in Europe, America and Asia have added it to their curricula. To learn it well, the player should know some basics of Muay Thai.

Muay Thai is fought in five three-minute rounds with two-minute breaks in between. The fight is preceded by a wai khru dance, in which each contestant pays homage to his teachers. Besides the symbolic meaning, the dance is a good warm-up exercise. You will notice that each boxer wears a headband and armbands. The headband, called mongkhol, is believed to bestow luck to the wearer since it has been blessed by a monk or the boxer’s own teacher. Since Buddhism and the teacher play important roles in the life of Thais, the headband is both a lucky charm and a spiritual object. It will be removed after the wai khru dance, and only by the boxer’s trainer. The armbands, meanwhile, are believed to offer protection and are only removed when the fight has ended.

A match is decided by a knockout or by points. Three judges decide who carries the round and the one who wins the most rounds, win the fight. The referee plays a very important role, since boxer’s safety depends on his decision.To one side of the ring is the band section, comprising a Javanese clarinet, drums and cymbals. They accompany the fight from the homage dance to the conclusion. The tempo goes up as the action inside the ring intensifies. The musicians are mostly old-timers who have seen just about anything, yet their music always makes the heart race faster. It is said that the tune is a siren song that the true Muay Thai devotee can never resist.

Equipment that is necessary for Muay Thai matches must be provided by the stadium. There are a stopwatch, a signal gong, a warning bell, and boxing gloves of various sizes according to the rules, equipment to provide water for boxers, and other additional personal accessories for boxers who have not prepared their own such as boxing shorts in red or blue, jock straps, surgical tape, or sacred cords. Thai boxing can be classified into two major types, the first is muay lak which puts the emphasis on caution and patience, and is very rare nowadays. The second is muay kiew which is full of tricks and feints performed to catch the opponent off guard.

In ancient Greece and Rome,it was quite normal for boxing, wrestling and weaponry to make up part of a young man’s education. The Romans turned boxing into a more brutal sport by making the event into a gladiatorial competition. During this era, boxers covered their arms and hands with leather thongs called “cestus”. The forerunner of today’s’ boxing gloves.Modern day boxing can be traced back to the 1904 St Louis USA Olympics, when the USA won 7 gold medals, before 1904 boxing was considered to dangerous, the 1908 Olympics was the first time for the sport in the UK with England winning 5 gold medals.

UK Boxing History: First Heavyweight Champ First Boxing Gloves First Rules

Boxing events declined and finally disappeared during the fall of the Roman Empire around 5th century AD and was not revived until 1660 by English monarchy. The first printed record of a staged boxing match appeared in a newspaper in 1681. The most notable icon of boxing history during this era is James Figg – who become the first British heavyweight champion of 1719. He was also the pioneer of “sparring exhibitions” and founded numerous amphitheaters for boxing.

James Figg died around 1740 but left behind his favorite pupil named George Taylor who later became the successor of Figg’s title. However, it was in 1734 that a man named Jack Broughton completely revolutionized the sport by formulating the first codes of the game known as the “London Prize Ring Rules of 1743″ and inventing the first boxing gloves.

Jack Broughton is known in boxing history as the “Father of Boxing Rules”. He formulated the rule that no fighter can hit below the waist or while his opponent is down, which ensured that no more fatalities during bouts would occur. These first rules of boxing remained the standard regulations until it was revised in 1838.

Revised Rules And Boxing History Worldwide

Jack Broughton London Prize Ring Rules of 1743 had an update in 1838 to include additional rules to protect boxers, these included rules for bordering of ropes to 24-foot-square rings. And rules covering knocked downs, a boxer has to rise without anyone’s help within 30 seconds for the fight to continue. The new rules also forbid head butting, biting and “hitting below the belt” which would now be classed as fouls.

During the early 19th century, the influence of religious movements and reforms as well as the rise of the middle class gave a negative effect on how people approved of boxing. As a result, various laws against boxing were passed and law enforcements began stopping bouts. The judge prosecutes all people who were involved with prizefights.

Due to the restrictions enforced over boxers in the United Kingdom, many British boxers immigrated to the United States to find a new place to defend their titles. From the immigrants’ influence, boxing history in the United States dramatically became popular when an English boxer was set to fight an American boxer.

The first heavyweight world championships took place on April 17 of 1860 at the Farnborough, England. The match was between the British champion Tom Sayers and a popular American boxer known as John Camel Heenan. The fight lasted for 120 minutes of continuous action, but paused in the 37th round when the crowd rushed forward into the ring. After another five rounds of bashing, the world championship ended with a draw – each fighter receiving a championship belt for world title.