A Kun Khmer delegation led by Khov Chhay received a certificate of appreciation from the Long Beach City Council for staging a Kun Khmer title fight in the US for the first time. Suely Saro
The Long Beach City Council, under Mayor Rex Richardson and District 6 council president Suely Saro, have expressed their support for Kun Khmer by presenting a certificate of appreciation to the Kun Khmer Boxing Federation (KBF), which is currently promoting the sport in California, the US.
The certificate was presented during a visit by Khov Chhay, KBF president, on April 9. Chhay is currently leading a delegation of fighters and officials on their American tour.
“My office and I, along with Mayor Rex Richardson, were honoured to welcome and recognise the KBF by presenting a certificate to the federation president for his historic efforts to elevate the ancient martial art of Kun Khmer onto the international stage, through the first-ever title competition held in Long Beach, California, USA” said Saro, after the meeting.
In an April 10 social media post, Chhay acknowledged the certificate as a significant milestone in the international promotion of Cambodia’s traditional martial art.
“It was a great honour for the federation to receive this certificate of appreciation for promoting Kun Khmer in Long Beach and organising international friendly matches and title fights on US soil. This is a major step in bringing our ancient martial art to a faraway land,” he wrote.
Council president Saro also shared that the Kun Khmer delegation was invited by Richer San, head of the Long Beach Sister Cities program, to participate in the 2025 Long Beach Sangkran Festival and the 17th Annual Cambodian Parade and Culture Festival. These events aim to strengthen sports diplomacy and cultural exchange between the United States and Cambodia.
“I am a strong supporter of Sister Cities. The main goal of Sister Cities is to promote peace and understanding through people-to-people interactions, cultural exchanges and cooperation in areas such as arts, education, sports, business and community development,” she explained.
Looking ahead to the 2028 Olympic Games, which will be hosted in Los Angeles and Long Beach, Saro suggested that it could be a timely opportunity to elevate international sports like Kun Khmer, especially in collaboration with Cambodia. Notably, Long Beach has the largest Cambodian population in the US.
“Kun Khmer is a traditional Cambodian martial art accompanied by live classical music, as we witnessed during the performance at Long Beach City Hall. Long Beach looks forward to continuing its support of Kun Khmer!” she added.
