On a recent photowalk, I came across a Muay Thai training gym tucked behind a small Chinese temple on the banks of the Chao Phraya river. Using my limited Thai, I was able to find out when they practiced, and I went back later that week to photograph the practice. The week after that, I returned with a translator so I could get a better idea of what I was seeing.
The gym is called Sit Chaansing. It is named for the master, as coaches are referred to in Muay Thai, who trained the current Muay Thai master, Chanamet Tongsalay. Chanamet is known, in traditional Thai fashion, by his nickname, Oat. Oat has trained in Muay Thai since he was a youngster, and although he never competed himself, he now trains ten boys aged 11-20. The students have come to learn to be professional Muay Thai fighters, and some of them already have won local championships. The younger ones attend school during the day, but the older ones train full-time for competitions in Thailand and Asia. Oat has given each one a boxing name based on his fighting style.
The students train together with Oat six days a week, from 4:00-6:00 pm. The school is free for the students; Oat works as a cloth trader during the day to support himself, and he runs the school through the funds that the fighters make from competing. (By law, Muay Thai students are allowed to keep half of the earnings they receive from participating in competitions, and they turn over the other half to their school.) The gym itself sits on donated land, so there are few operating costs. Oat also economizes; the defensive pads that he wears, for example cost 3,000 baht (about $90), so he tapes them up to extend their life.
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