September 28, 2018
Cambodians test Lethwei mettle

A pair of Cambodian fighters will test their mettle tomorrow against some of Myanmar’s best in World Lethwei Championship’s latest event – WLC: Heartless Tigers in Myanmar.

The event will see the debut of Kun Khmer star Roeung Sophorn who will face off against Myanmar’s own Yan Naing Tun. Sophorn is WLC’s latest marquee signing and will bring the attention of millions of fans in his home country as he makes his lethwei debut. The Kun Khmer fighter carries a record of 141 wins, with 17 losses and just three draws.

Cambodia’s Pich Mtes Khmang will also be in action and has been drawn in a lightweight bout against Mite Yine.

Speaking at Pochentong airport ahead of his departure, Sophorn said he was excited and quietly confident.

“Yes, I am ready for Myanmar. Lethwei is exciting to watch and I’m happy to take part,” explained Sophorn.

“I will try to win for Cambodia and especially to promote Cambodian martial arts on the international stage,” he added.
https://www.khmertimeskh.com/50537370/c ... ei-mettle/

What is lethwei ?

World Lethwei Championship to make US debut later this year, talks ongoing with ‘familiar names in MMA’
WLC is the leading lethwei organization in the world and are looking to broaden their audience over the coming year.
By Bloody Elbow - 1 February 2020

Lethwei is a Burmese bare-knuckle combat sport that originated in Myanmar, Southeast Asia. It is known as ‘The Art of Nine Limbs’ because headbutts can play a key role in the action alongside the more commonly used punches, kicks, knees and elbows. The sport is often viewed as niche, but that is a perception World Lethwei Championship’s CEO, Gerald Ng, is trying to change.

Ng previously held roles in sports broadcast with Eleven Sports Network and One Championship before making the move over to the World Lethwai Championship. He has over a decade of sports management experience and has been a huge fan of martial arts for his whole life.

Ng was brought into the organization by a group of Burmese businessmen, who wanted to raise the international awareness of lethwai, to spearhead their project. Since joining the WLC, he hasn’t looked back and believes there is no reason why the sport can’t be as popular as the more established disciplines.

In full: https://www.bloodyelbow.com/2020/1/30/2 ... -muay-thai

9 Lethwei events scheduled in Myanmar, Cambodia, Thailand, Japan and USA
By Fightmag - June 13, 2020

The World Lethwei Championship (WLC) has announced nine international bareknuckle fighting events for 2020-2021 season. The list includes the visits to seven different cities across five countries, such as Myanmar, Cambodia, Thailand, Japan and USA.

The first event is set for August 4 in Yangon, Myanmar, following the previous show produced in January. It precedes the organization’s debut in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, which is now penciled for September 18, after the original date of April 3 was postponed due to coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
In full: https://www.fightmag.com.au/2020/06/12/ ... scheduled/

June 30, 2020
World Lethwei C’ship in Cambodia slated for Sept 18
The World Lethwei Championship (WLC), the organisation behind the development and promotion of Lethwei, has released the new schedule for its ‘big event’ in Cambodia.

According to the WLC, the World Lethwei Championship will be held in Phnom Penh this coming September 18, more than five months after its original schedule.

This is good news for many fans, who have long waited for Lethwei to finally set foot in Cambodia.

Martial arts are among the most popular sports here. Cambodians often follow, not only Bokator, Kun Khmer and other home-grown martial arts, but also foreign competitions like Universal Fighting Championship (UFC) and One Championship.

“We look forward to working with the local Kun Khmer community and putting on exciting shows for our Cambodian fans,” Gerald Ng, the CEO of WLC, said.

The Cambodia edition of the World Lethwei Championship was originally scheduled for April 3, but its organisers decided against pushing through with the event at that time because of the coronavirus outbreak that swept through the Kingdom and other parts of the world.

If the event pushes through, this will mark the first time the World Lethwei Championship is to be held outside of Myanmar.

The Cambodia event is part of a growing number of events that WLC is planning to hold inside and outside of Myanmar to promote the ancient Burmese martial art.

In Lethwei, fighters compete bare-knuckled and are allowed to use punches, head-butts, elbows, kicks, throws, clinching and other forms of attack to subdue their opponents. This lead to the sport being dubbed as the ‘most brutal martial art in the world’.
https://www.khmertimeskh.com/50739649/w ... r-sept-18/

would love to go to the BKK events in Jan, but I doubt travel will be possible by than