Thailand avenges SEA Games Muay Thai snub with 2 golds in Cambodian chess
Thailand took sweet revenge after Muay Thai was replaced with Kun Khmer at the SEA Games, winning two golds in the Cambodian chess competition over the weekend.
The 32nd Southeast Asian (SEA) Games launched on Friday with host Cambodia seeking to maximise its medal haul by including two Khmer folk sports.
Kun Khmer (kickboxing) and Ouk Chatrang (Cambodian chess) feature in this year’s SEA Games, which see 11 countries battling for 581 gold medals in 36 sports competitions over the next two weeks.
Kun Khmer, which dates back over a thousand years to the Khmer Empire, has controversially replaced Thailand’s Muay Thai at these games.
Thailand withdrew from the competition after the International Federation of Muaythai Associations (IFMA) warned that member countries who send kickboxing athletes to the games will be banned from IFMA competitions for two years. IFMA members Malaysia, Vietnam, Philippines and Indonesia have sent athletes for the competition but Singapore has joined Thailand in skipping the SEA Games Kun Khmer.
That leaves seven countries – Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines and Vietnam – vying for 19 gold medals in SEA Games kickboxing. Finals in the competition are scheduled for May 15-16.
Kun Khmer rules are similar to Muay Thai, with each contest lasting five rounds of three minutes each with a two-minute break between rounds. Fighters can use their fists, feet, knees and elbows but are not allowed to attack their opponents on the ground. Biting, grabbing ropes, or attacking their opponent’s back are also forbidden.
The contests are decided by knockout, in which one fighter cannot continue after a count of 10, or on points if they go the full five rounds.
Meanwhile, Cambodia's Ouk Chatrang has replaced classical chess, with six gold medals on offer. Ouk Chatrang is a little different from Western chess and more closely resembles Thai chess (Makruk) with pawns placed on the third row instead of the second.
Thailand managed to grab two gold and two bronze medals when the Ouk Chatrang competition was held over the weekend.
Cambodia also made other changes at this SEA Games. Bodybuilding has been removed altogether as Cambodia faced an athlete short after the Global Association of International Sports disqualified two Cambodian bodybuilders for steroid use. Meanwhile, badminton players from Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, Vietnam and Singapore have been barred from the mixed competition.
For e-sports, the host has replaced Fifa Online and RoV: Arena of Valor with Valorant, which is popular among Cambodian gamers.
The SEA Games Federation is set to limit the number of folk sports hosts can include. The federation has resolved that the next SEA Games will focus on sports included in the Olympics, Asian Games and Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games.
Folk sports will be reduced to four, said federation chairman Chaiyaphak Siriwat on Friday.
He said demonstration sports will be increased to three in a bid to boost inclusion of other sports in the SEA Games, such as frisbee and tug-of-war.
He added that the new regulation will come into effect during the 33rd SEA Games in Thailand from December 9 to 20, 2025.
Thailand was second in the medal table as of this morning (Monday) with 16 gold medals, 17 silvers and 26 bronze.
Topping the table was Cambodia with 29 golds, 21 silvers and 22 bronze.
Third was Indonesia with the same gold medal count as Thailand (16) but only 11 silver medals and 24 bronze.
