Bangkok – The Ministry of Culture has prepared to organize “Muay Thai Day” in honor of King Suriyenthrathibodi as well as to promote its Muay Thai Alliance project.
Culture Minister Weera Rojpojanarat has said that as the Cabinet mandated February 6th of each year “Muay Thai Day” in honor of King Suriyenthrathibodi, who was an accomplished Muay Thai practitioner, the ministry will be organizing an event to mark the date. The aim of the celebration will be to promote awareness about Thai boxing and its popularity worldwide.
The minister pointed out there are over 240 Muay Thai gyms in the Kingdom and 27 across the world, including in China, the UK and Brazil.
“The Prime Minister’s policy is for teachers to encourage students to learn Muay Thai in school, if only for self defense. For professional boxers, he has asked that more opportunities be created for them to compete. From this year onward, the ministry will seek to ensure that Muay Thai remains a defining characteristic of the Kingdom that is preserved by all”.
At the Muay Thai Day event, the ministry will hold a mass “Wai Kru” ceremony, an act practiced by boxers which shows respect to their teachers. Fights and performances will also be part of the day with One Round Knockout matches between 8 men’s pairings and 2 women’s. The event will take place this Saturday the 6th of February 2016 at the Thailand Cultural Center from 16.00 to 22.30 hrs.
