Kun Khmer boxer Soth Veasna (in red) in action against a Thai opponent at TV5 arena in October. TV5
A Brand-New Kun Khmer promotion is set to stage its first tournament this weekend, with the “Cambodia Kun Khmer KKIF” event scheduled for December 10.
The event is the first to be promoted by the Kun Khmer International Fight Gym (KKIF), and will be held in front of Chip Mong 271 Mega Mall in Phnom Penh’s Meanchey district.
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Promoter and matchmaker Sreu Sreng, widely known as “Samnob”, announced that A level fighters from six different nations have been hand-picked to take on six of Cambodia’s strongest Kun Khmer exponents.
One of the most sensational aspects of the event is the fact that it is scheduled to be broadcast to 192 countries across every inhabited continent on earth.
“If nothing changes, the Cambodia Kun Khmer KKIF will be broadcast to almost 200 nations on December 10. Such a massive broadcast has never taken place from the Kingdom before. This is the first time in the history of our traditional martial art that it will be seen in 192 of our partner countries,” he said.
Srey Chanthorn, head of the KKIF, took to social media to announce that the event will be free for all fans to watch. He noted that the six foreign fighters are all strong and will be worthy opponents for the Cambodian boxers.
SEA Games gold medallist Sok Rith will be the first to fight, meeting Yemen’s two-time national champion Zahran Abdulraoeb in the 54kg category. Their bout will be followed by a 65kg matchup between Sout Khevin and former Italy international Alex Gabriel.
The third fight will see Oung Vireak take on Thai P Nikhom. Both men are veterans with serious reputations. They are scheduled to meet in the 80kg class. SEA Games gold medallist Bird Sangkhem, Cambodia’s 57kg champion, will face off against Malaysia’s three-time gold medallist Muhamm Ad Shaiful.
Sok Thy will fight for the Kingdom’s honour against Filipino Casipe Salvadico Rhino in the 60kg category, while Chhoeung Lvey will meet Brazil’s Victor Camargo in the 72kg class.
Samnob confirmed all six of the matches will be fought under Kun Khmer rules. He explained that as the matches had been decided one month ago, the foreign fighters had had plenty of time to familiarise themselves with the regulations. He insisted that all of the bouts would be fairly judged, with no bias towards the local fighters.
“What the KKIF team and KKIF head Chanthorn are focused on is promoting Kun Khmer internationally. We want to ensure that the matches are all clean, fair fights. If we lose any of the bouts, it will be a good lesson for us and our athletes. If we win, we will seek out even stronger opposition,” said Samnob.
“Any boxer in the world, as long as they want to come to Cambodia, no matter how much it costs, we welcome them to come fight in the Kingdom. We want Khmer martial arts – and Khmer boxers – to become famous, both domestically and abroad,” he added.
He explained that the KKIF originally wanted to hold its first event in the US, but due to several favourable factors, the opportunity arose to stage the event in the Kingdom.
“If the event is a success, and attracts strong support, we will go on to organise more international tournaments, both here and overseas. At the end of the day, our goal is to share Kun Khmer with the world,” he said.
