Akshay Kumar in Muay Thai

MUAY THAI

Muay Thai is a form of martial arts practiced in large parts of the world, including Thailand and other Southeast Asian countries. The national sport of Thailand, the art of Muay Thai is similar to others in Southeast Asia such as: pradal serey in Cambodia, lethwei in Myanmar, tomoi in Malaysia and Lao boxing in Laos.

Known as "The Art of Eight Limbs", Muay Thai utilizes the hands, shins, elbows, and knees. A practitioner of Muay Thai thus has the ability to execute strikes using eight points of contact.

The art of Thai boxing is a self-defense technique that is as old as Thailand itself. Thai boxing is a branch of knowledge, whose existence dates far back Thai culture.

In 300 B.C., the Thai Mung were invaded and sent fleeing for their lives to the south of Thailand. The vanquished villagers developed a form of self-defense using their feet, knees elbows and fists as a way to defend themselves. This evolved into the art we now know as Muay Thai.

When Burma attempted to conquer Thailand, they were defeated when the Burmese army was driven back at the hands of Thai fighters using Thai boxing, spears, and elephants. For more than 2000 years Thai boxing has played a significant role in the survival of Thailand.

In former times, Thai boxers would bind their hands with hard and abrasive surfaces. The practice was eventually discontinued and then replaced with padded gloves. Kicking rubber plants for conditioning legs and shins has since been replaced by canvas bags but the training remains as rigorous now as it was centuries ago.

Traditional Muay Thai practiced today varies significantly from the ancient art muay boran and uses kicks and punches in a ring with gloves similar to those used in Western boxing.

A practitioner of Muay Thai who is not of Thai nationality or race, is known as a Falang Nak Muay (foreign boxer).

Muay Thai has seen a jump in popularity worldwide as it has been recognized as effective in mixed martial arts training and competition. Competitors including Anderson "The Spider" Silva, Mauricio "Shogun" Rua, and Gina Carano, Cris Cyborg are some of many fighters who claim Muay Thai as their main fighting style.

The recent films "Ong-Bak" and "The Protector" have demonstrated Muay Thai star Tony Jaa's incredible martial arts abilities.