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Articles
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These articles have all appeared (or will soon appear) in national martial arts magazines. In the future I hope to upload the printed versions. Name of the publication and date of the issue are given at the bottom of each piece.
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JUNIOR FIGHT RULES
Following the controversy stirred up by the "Strictly baby fight club" program there is an attempt to create a set of agreed rules for all Junior fights held in this country.
Darren Phillips (GFC) has produced an initial set of guidelines for discussion. This is my responce. Any thoughts you have are welcome.
There should be no head contact for children below the age of 16.
For No head contact rules:-
Minimum age of participants should be 10
For children under the age of 14 shin pads, body armour and 10/120z gloves should be worn
Exp children of ages 13/14 need not wear body armour if agreed but shin pads and 10/112 oz gloves must be worn (still no head contact)
For head contact bouts. I am very much against head guards, I do not believe them to be safe, and this view is shared by a vast majority of people I talk to. Even Hilary Jones (Celebrity doctor) made this point in the News Of The World article. I think that Shin pads and heavier gloves should be worn and this will provide sufficient protection. Body armour, is another option to be discussed.
There should be no No Full Thai rules fights AT ALL for children under the age of 18.
Judging Criteria
The judging criteria should be as it is In Thailand, i.e. on effect.
First of all, if it’s not done this way it is not Thai Boxing.
Secondly, you can’t expect people to train and fight under a specific set of scoring guidelines for a period of time and then just change.
Thirdly, the main striking scoring techniques are body kick, knee and front kick, not boxing.
As for the length of bouts. I am a big believer in five rounds from as early a time as possible, and I think that if this was adopted by juniors it would produce the same effect as I have seen with adults, fights would slow down the skill level dramatically improves and the scrappiness is reduced.
It’s probably not practical for five rounds from the start, but we should consider moving them to that as soon as possible (although at least half my kids currently competing, did five rounds in their first fight)
23/04/08
MUAY THAI – A COMPARISON
There are a number of elements that stand out to make Muay Thai a unique martial art.
Muay Thai is a full contact sport. Apart from the relatively recent innovation of Contact Karate and the Japanese hybrid Kickboxing, no other martial art truly qualifies as a full contact sport.
Fighters are taught to keep light on their feet and never to bring their feet together. Certain patterns are taught to assist in the understanding and usage of the footwork although there are no formal stances through which the fighter moves as in other styles.
Muay Thai is often referred to as “The Science of Eight Limbs”. This is because; not only the hands and feet are used as weapons. Extensive use is also made of the knees and elbows, both in attack and defence.
During training great use is made of the punch/kick bag to develop focus and accuracy in techniques.
The heavy bag in particular, is used to toughen the shin, as this is the area of the leg the Thai Boxer uses most frequently, especially when blocking or using the roundhouse kick.
The bag is also used, along with smaller target pads to improve co-ordination of attacking techniques, i.e. Using the eight limbs to their fullest extent.
With regard to defence, much of this is done by evasion, related to footwork, or by presenting an area of the body, such as the shin or elbow which on receiving the blow, would cause more pain to the attacker than to the defender.
A Thai Boxers general standard of dress consists of a pair of shorts, a T-shirt and ankle supports. This is to present the minimum of restriction to movement and, because training is geared to the promotion of cardio-vascular endurance where students are often working at a high pulse rate, to allow the body to cool efficiently.
In Muay Thai there are no formal sets of movements such as Karate katas or Kung Fu sets. Students develop their speed, rhythm, and appreciation of timing and distance by continual sparring, both pre-arranged and free. The Ram Muay or ritual dance is taught by way of tradition and to assist fighters in their pre fight warm up.
Each individual who wishes to train with East Riding Thai Boxing is given a choice as to their training intentions, whether it be for self defence, competition or simply to become fitter.
Remember Muay Thai or Thai Boxing is over 3000 years old.
Adapted from article written by S.Hateley 1989
Grading in Muay Thai
If there’s one thing guaranteed to spark a heated discussion amongst Thai Boxing instructors, it’s the question “Should the students be graded?”
In the Corner aims to reflect the views of instructors on this issue. As often happens we won’t arrive at consensus but there are several points of agreement hidden in the comments. We will review these later but first lets look at a bit of history and then let the instructors have their say…
HISTORY
It is important to understand the history of the sport to fully appreciate the current position. The original Thai Masters, Toddy Woody and Sken were all Tae Kwon Do instructors. They taught their students Thai Boxing or Thai Kwon Do to enable them to compete on the Full Contact circuit promoted by Danny Connors and Alan Tattersal in the Manchester area. With their background in traditional martial arts and the influence of the MAC (Martial Arts Commission) it was inevitable that some form of grading system would develop even though this is not a feature of traditional Thai training. Though each Master had their own syllabus these were combined by the BTBC in 1985 and it appears that most of the groups that do grade still adhere to this syllabus (1st Khan to 10th Khan), though each group has introduced their own variations. This provides a basis for setting a common standard even if the exact details of each grade requirements do not match exactly.
Authority to grade to Red Armband (10th Khan) is given to the Senior Instructor, however this is defined, with Masters grading to Senior Instructor (though some people would not be comfortable with the title Master preferring Chief Instructor within their camp?)
DARREN PHILLIPS (GFC Muay Thai)
My grading syllabus was based around Master Sken's, who I think defined the original white to Red grading used by the BTBC. He then added five more grades: -
Red and White
Red, white and yellow
Red white yellow and green
Red and Silver (senior instructors)
Red and Gold (Masters)
He did this because he had red armbands that had been training for 3 years, 20 years and everything in-between. So he tried to define between them. Basically the above red arm band grades where awarded by him and where based on ability, but also the amount of time training, teaching ability, number of students and courses attended. You had to have attended and passed an exam on several courses before even standing a chance of progressing.
He only ever actually put down in writing the requirements for senior instructor. These included, 15 years training, 6 years of your own gym, 50 licensed students and four of your own red armband instructors amongst other things. Now it might seem at first glance that this is a grading based on time served, which in itself I don't find that bad. However, if you think about it, you're not that likely to have been around
that long, have your own gym for six years and actually managed to train people to the right standard unless you know what you are doing.
I am actually refining my grading syllabus and I will post it on the website and people can like it or lump it. I have already been criticised by some people for doing gradings, which aren't done in Thailand, but this is not Thailand and I know what is required in this country to keep people motivated. I also know the value of doing gradings as far as maintaining a high standard of basics and not forgetting certain techniques. My new grading syllabus will be more structured than it is now and it will help me and my instructors maintain the high standard I have set. I will gladly take my red armbands to any gym in the country to be tested. I have left something’s behind but I have added a lot of things, which I thought were necessary. The last red armband grading I did included over an hour and half of theory questions about teaching and Muay Thai.
RICHARD SMITH (Bad Company)
With gradings - I do them at my gym, but my view on them is as follows:
I don’t really believe in a standardised across the board system of grading which provides a benchmark of how good someone is or a "qualification". I think each gym will have its own methods of teaching and breaking down learning and as Muay Thai is a fighting sport, the success of those methods will be tested in the ring.
If the gym has a system of learning that breaks things down into "grades" to ensure a systemised approach to learning, fine, but I am always cautious of making my gradings out to be anything other than this. I think that to call someone an "instructor" should depend on a lot more than grades or qualifications.
When I graded it was under Toddy’s system and there were 10 grades. I went through all the grades and now find that the way it was taught does help me now as an instructor. However, I have to say I have never taken anyone through from 1-10. The highest grade I've given is 6, because the fighters are the ones who tend to stick with it and they seem to lose interest in grades when they concentrate on their fight career. Steve Deane’s the only one that has left to set up his own gym. He did about 2 grades with me - then concentrated on his fighting and lost interest in gradings. Although he has no gradings he has a degree in Sports Science and has a number of coaching qualifications as well as his fight experience, so the lack of gradings doesn’t really make a difference.
I think gradings are ok as an alternative for those who don’t want to fight, but at the end of the day Muay Thai is a fighting sport. I am conscious that at the moment there is no formal method of assessing whether someone is fit to run a gym and hold professional indemnity insurance. I think that it would be a good idea to regulate things so that quality and safety improve because otherwise I see a day when we will all struggle to get insured, but I am not sure that grading is the answer to this - maybe a licensing system run by the "governing" bodies. We won’t let anyone in the ITKBA unless we know them and they have a good track record.
I have never used an external examiner - jut done it myself. I don’t actually do the grading as a test/exam; I just do it as a sort of private lesson. I only have group of about 6 for the grading and I just take them through the syllabus sheet. When I am happy they are all competent, I give them the grade.
I agree that grades are not the way forward for "legitimising" instructor status. I would prefer to see something more like the British Boxing Board of Control system of granting a Trainers licence, promoters licence, fighters licence etc.
CONCLUSIONS
Credibility is a word I have heard a lot whilst researching this piece. This can be split between the credibility you have inside the sport and that you receive within the wider community.
Inside the sport credibility is derived from fighting at a high level based on whom you have fought rather than belts and titles. Also, lineage is important, who taught you and their level of credibility. To make these judgements requires an in-depth knowledge not available to outsiders.
Outside the sport grades take on another level of significance. Many insurance providers use the grade as a qualification of competence to instruct, which in turn can determine the price of your insurance or even whether you get insurance at all. Sports governing bodies will use this to determine the level to which you can grade your own students.
Many instructors are ex-fighters. This gives credibility if they fought successfully to a high level but may mean that they did not learn as broad a range of techniques in pursuit of their ring careers. If it is a fact that most students who stay within the sport are fighters who are not interested in grading where will the next generation of instructors come from?
Without a system of passing on all of the techniques is it inevitable that the sport will develop a narrow focus on those basic techniques that are proven to be effective in the ring? It is also pertinent to ask whether knowledge of the syllabus or a proven record as a fighter is enough in itself to make you a good instructor, but that’s best left to a separate article.
The usual format for the “In the Corner” series is to present the views of four instructors, each with a different take on the subject. It is revealing that I was unable to find anyone who took an extreme stance either pro grading stance or anti grading. For this reason I have only used two instructors and invite any Thai instructor out there to follow up this article with a piece supporting the argument that grading students is more important than developing fighters or that grading is an irrelevance in a fighting sport. In conclusion there is no right answer to this question. As long as the students are able to realise their goals whether that is a high grade, a ring career or an instructors certificate, the sport will continue to grow. Maybe diversity is the best thing after all?
Fighters Magazine (2006)
CO-OPERATION AND COMPETITION
The Legacy
In the 1970’s the legacy of the professional Thai camps held a strong influence on the attitudes of trainers when the Thai Masters decreed that each camp should isolate itself and only come into contact in the square ring.
When the second generation of students began to open their own clubs in the 1980’s each was tied to their Master so that no relaxation of the rules was possible. Fighters from a particular Master’s camp would not fight each other, which often meant that the best domestic match ups were never made. On the other hand squad training did allow fighters from small clubs to spar and train with their colleagues within the Camp or Association as long as their teachers held loyal to their Master. Fighters could train every day if they were prepared to travel and specialist training was available either directly from the Master or their more experienced fighters.
This system began to dissolve in the 1990’s and continues to recede as the third generation of instructors open their own schools and the second generation believe that 20 years experience entitles them to make decisions for themselves. Clubs that once were controlled by the Master have been reinvigorated and reborn as independent clubs or small associations. Whilst this has freed up each club to pursue their own agenda (fighters, amateur competition, MMA, K1, traditional Muay Boran, take your choice) they have now to resolve the problems created by a lack of back up provided by the traditional system. Many clubs could only boast a hand full of fighters; many lacked a ring or a specialised fighters coach. Trying to balance the demands of all their members whilst dealing with the mountain of paperwork demanded by insurers and NGB’s leaves little time to provide the level of high intensity training demanded by the sport. As a result many fighters have missed out on the opportunity to compete whilst others have gone into a fight with less than 100% preparation.
The Solution
One of the first attempts at resolving these problems was the creation of the inter-club competition in which fighters could compete with protection if required using controlled but still powerful techniques in a no decision environment. This has been refined over the years to include some decision bouts, higher levels of contact etc but the fundamental aim of exposing the fighters to new, unknown sparring partners remains.
From this initial contact many new friendships were made and clubs began to arrange joint fighter training sessions particularly in the run up to matches. Some clubs decided to specialise, making the decision not to enter any fighters in full contact events and using the inter-club as the sole forum for testing their students. Where students wanted to breach this ceiling arrangements were made for them to train with and fight for another club, whilst staying with their original instructor for technical, syllabus training. This was the system I first saw in Holland where fighters from Peter Thysee’s Gym have to train and fight for Sportschool Vos (Ernesto Hoost, Remy Bonjaski etc) if they wish to move beyond amateur competition. Thysee himself fought at a high level including full Thai rules bouts in the top Thai stadiums but does not feel able to provide the support required at the higher levels of the sport many consider the toughest in the world. In England Ronnie Thompson of Walkden Thai Boxing has taken a similar decision despite a very successful fighting career under Master Sken and training a number of top ranked fighters during the 1990’s.
Where clubs were training in sports centres or community halls they would arrange to train with clubs that were equipped with a ring to improve their fighters’ ring craft. This is the sort of arrangement my own club East Riding has with Nick Philips’ Scarborough Thai. Another example of shared resources can be seen where fighters cross train with another Thai trainer. When Lisa Houghton-Smith (Bad Company fought Ilonka Elmont (Fight Factory Carbin – Holland) for the world title a few years ago she worked extensively with Master A to develop her neck wrestling and in –fighting skills. When asked about his reasons for bringing in Master A, Richard Smith (Bad Company’s Chief Instructor) said “The reasons I took Lisa to Master A were two-fold. For a start we already had links with their gym from my own training and fighting. I trained with Master Toddy and his brother Master A, in fact I remember Master A first coming over and training with him when he could hardly speak any English (21 years ago now!!) and I've always kept a good relationship with him. Because Lisa is my wife the closeness of the relationship sometimes got in the way of training and she wouldn't respond to me pushing her as much as I knew she would with something to prove in a different environment. Also, she is always moaning that I am too big and that she wanted to pad-work and clinch-work with someone smaller like she was doing in Thailand. At the time, Liam, Andy, Richard Cadden and my other better fighters were still developing and not at the level I needed. The fight and Lisa winning the World title does illustrate the benefits of being able to train with other gyms and trainers although I do think its very important to keep a close relationship with one trainer that you trust rather than floating about from gym to gym if you are a fighter.”
The Cost?
These changes have had surprisingly few drawbacks and these are easily outweighed by the benefits. Firstly, where there is close co-operation between clubs there is a reluctance to fight each other. However given the number of sanctioning bodies and subsequently the number of fights available this does not often create any problems, particularly as there is also little financial incentive to make these matches. At the higher level the best fighters can still be matched as most of the gyms specialising in producing fighters such as Nongkee Pahuyuth, Keddle’s Gym, Bad Company or Trojan are self contained and whilst they will offer support to smaller clubs are not compromised by sharing resources with each other.
The greater exposure of fighters through these exchanges means that each club can better prepare their fighters based on the knowledge of the opponent. In addition to their first hand knowledge they are likely to know someone who can give them feed back on their opponents strengths and weaknesses. This is, of course, a two-edged sword, whilst you know more about the opponent they are also going to know more about your fighter as well.
All in all these developments have led to a better attitude amongst instructors and recognition that by co-operating they can promote healthy competition. Fighters now see a fight as a means of testing themselves free of the negative rivalries fostered in the past. Finally this has allowed clubs to offer a greater range of opportunities to their students. Even those not interested in competition can benefit from shared knowledge and experience generated by these contacts. Whilst tradition is the cornerstone of our art we are right to move beyond the traditional attitudes and recognise that Britain today needs new thinking and new solutions to develop a British Thai Boxing system that can produce fighters that can take on and beat the best fighters from Thailand’s Muay Thai camps.
NAKMAS Review Spring 2007 (not yet published)
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