BANGKOK (Reuters) – The death of a 13-year-old boy, knocked out during a Thai boxing match, has inflamed debate about whether children should be allowed to take part in a dangerous sport that many of them see as their only chance of escaping poverty.

Anucha Kochana was pronounced dead from a brain haemorrhage on Monday after he was knocked out in a match on the outskirts of Bangkok on Sunday evening.

Thai boxing, or Muay Thai as it is known, is a passion in Thailand with millions of boys dreaming of glory in the ring, and a life of riches, for them and their families, that success can bring.

But the sport is governed by few rules – children of any age can box in an organised match – leaving them at risk of severe injury, or worse, as Anucha’s case has sadly shown.

The boy’s grieving relatives told media they would not press charges over his death.

But legislators appointed by a military government have already been looking to tighten regulations to ban children under the age of 12 from professional bouts. But the effort is opposed by many in the boxing community.

“Those aged 12 to 15 will need to be registered, have the permission of their parents and wear protective gear for professional fights,” General Adulyadej Inthapong, the vice chairman of the National Legislative Assembly’s committee on sports, told Reuters, referring to the proposed law.

Footage of Anucha’s last fight posted on social media shows the boy, without any protective gear, getting punched repeatedly in the head before falling down and banging his head on the mat. Somchart Charoenwatcharawit, president of the Professional Boxing Association of Thailand, said the proposed changes would hurt the livelihood of an estimated 300,000 child boxers under the age of 15.

“The new rule … will hurt the children and their parents who earn tens of thousands of baht from boxing in what is a national sport,” Somchart said.

He said the referee on Sunday should have stopped the fight when Anucha looked groggy and the match did not meet his association’s standards.

The association thinks the minimum age for boys taking part in organised bouts should be 10, he said.

Jiraporn Laothamatas, a neuroradiologist and director of the Advanced Diagnostic Imaging Center, has studied the damage that boxing can inflict. Her research has fuelled the push for change but she says even the proposed minimum age of 12 for competition is a compromise that she disagrees with.

“If I had my way, the minimum age would be 18,” she said, while acknowledging that Muay Thai is an important source of income for many, as well as being culturally important.

“The change in the law is being delayed because the industry makes a lot of money from child boxing,” she said.

“It will take some guts for the government to push it through.”

(Reporting by Panarat Thepgumpanat and Panu Wongcha-um; Editing by Robert Birsel)

Two Thai boxers have gone to tech police to complain that someone has used their images on a gay website.

Theerawat, 19, who is in the 112 pounds weight division and his mate Chai-anan, 100 pounds, were notified on Facebook that they were seen on the site.

Soon saucy messages were coming in on messenger asking how much for a round with the boxers.

Yesterday they decided to make a formal complaint to find the person responsible.

Theerawat said he was depicted in boxing shorts during a gym session at their training camp – Pin Sinchai. He is known as Somdech and his friend is Phanmongkhol at the camp.

Tech police are investigating.

Source: https://www.sanook.com/news/7560858/

Photo from: Muay Siam magazine.

Prominent Muay Thai fighters have handed a letter to the Sports Authority of Thailand to protest a new bill which forbids children from fighting in the ring.
They said if enacted, the law would sabotage the future of Muay Thai. “Stop the |law to eradicate Muay Thai,” read their banner.

The group was led by legendary boxer Samart Payakaroon, president of the Muay Thai Naiyhanomtom Association and a former WBC world champion. Other prominent boxers present when the letter was delivered on Wednesday included Kaopong Sittichuchai and Jaroenthong Kiatbanchong.

Samart Payakaroon said his Association opposed the bill. “Even now, Thai boxers can barely compete with foreign fighters. If we forbid child boxing, it will spell the end for Muay Thai in this country,” he said.

Likewise, Kaopong believes the new law will disadvantage Thai fighters because foreign boxers are allowed to practise |punching and kicking from as young as 5 or 6.

In an interview with TV’s Channel 3, a 12-year-old boxer Purithat Poonsuk said he and many other child kickboxers objected to the bill. Purithat, who has been boxing since he was 9, is afraid that Thai boxers will lose ground to their overseas rivals.

The drafted legislation to cap the minimum age of boxers at 12 has been widely criticised by adult and child boxers, boxing camps, and match organisers.

The amendment of the 1999 Boxing Act was proposed by members of the National Legislative Assembly and is now being reviewed by the cabinet.

It requires boxers below 20 to seek parental consent and those below 15 to seek parental consent plus permission from boxing supervising authorities.

Those in favour of the bill include child rights activists and doctors, who say punches and kicks cause brain damage to young boxers and may lead to neurological disorders later in life, including Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s Disease.

On the other hand, most boxers are from impoverished families who barely makes ends meet and see boxing as a way out of poverty.

Boxers across the country also |plan to gather to protest the bill on 12 November.

Source: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/detail/national/30357701

Date: Saturday, November 3^rd, 2018. Doors open: 5:30pm. Undercard: 6:30pm. Livestream: 8pm Thai time (6am PT / 9am ET / 2pm CET) on Fox Sports Asia at facebook.com/foxsportsasia &in Thai at facebook.com/fullmetaldojo

Venue: Insanity Nightclub, Sukhumvit soi 11, Bangkok.

Near Nana BTS Station. Parking available under the nightclub and nearby.

Tickets: 1200 baht in advance from www.ticketmelon.com/event/fmd16. 1500 on the door. Table bookings available until Friday – email fullmetaldojo@gmail.com or Facebook Messenger at m.me/fullmetaldojo or Insanity at m.me/insanitynightclub.

The moment you’ve all been waiting for is finally here. Asia’s favorite MMA (Mixed Martial Arts) promotion are officially back on November 3rd with FMD16: Big Trouble in Little Bangkok.

The event will be in FMD’s hometown of Bangkok, Thailand, and Halloween themed after the 1986 Kurt Russell cult classic, ‘Big Trouble in Little China’, set in the mysterious underworld of Chinatown, San Francisco, featuring wise-cracking heroes, Chinese street gangs and magical kung fu ghosts. Full Metal Dojo events are synonymous with hard hitting cageside MMA action from the best fighters in the region, in a nightclub atmosphere of borderline madness, built on a solid foundation of honesty and integrity, and topped off with a sprinkling of cinematic class and the laughter of ecstatic fans. But where has Full Metal Dojo been all year, you may be wondering? Check out this article on Fox Sport Asia to see what we’ve been up to.

Media Weigh-in: 7pm, Friday, November 2^nd, The Clubhouse Bar, Sukhumvit 23, Bangkok. Free entry. All are welcome to see the FMD16 fighters face off for the cameras.

Live Broadcast: FMD16 will broadcast to the world in a dual language livestream from 8pm Thai time (6am PT / 9am ET / 2pm CET) on Fox Sports Asia at facebook.com/foxsportsasia with English commentary from Brad Robinson, the veteran Asian-based MMA fighter, alongside Asia’s Got Talent host Marc Nelson.

Thai commentary is on facebook.com/fullmetaldojo featuring Mark Abbott, FMD host & Thai fitness expert alongside Thai MMA fighter Mangthus Rewtawee.

FMD16 will be hosted by Jon Nutt, founder of Full Metal Dojo, and host and commentator of a never-ending list of combat sports shows across Asia.

Fightcard: