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Pradal Serey (; English: Khmer Boxing) is the name of the centuries old kickboxing martial arts of Cambodia. Pradal Serey is founded on four techniques which consits of: blows of the fist, kicks(comprising of kicks from the shin and feet), blows of the elbow, and blows of the knee. The clinch is also used to wear down the opponent.

Many of its students are of Southeast Asian and East Asian descent. To name a few, many foreign practioners such as French, Australian, British, Sudanese, and Americans parttake in the sport of Pradal Serey as well.

Modern Pradal Serey differs from the original ancient art. The technique and moves of the art has change to support the sport version seen today. Today it has become more of a sport rather than a way of self defense. It is the national sport of Cambodia. It is also known as Kbach Kun Khmer,Sovanna Phum, Traditional Khmer Boxing or Brodal Serei depending on the translation.

Rules and Match Set Up

A match consits of 5 sets of 3 minute rounds and takes place in a 6.1 meter square boxing ring. A one or two minute break occurs between each round. At the beginning of each match boxers practice the praying rituals known as the Twai Bongkum Kru. Traditional Cambodian music is played during the match. The music is played used the instruments of the skor yaul(a type of drum), the sraliai(a flute like instruments and the stringed chhing. Boxers wear leather gloves and shorts.

Rules:

  • 1. A boxer is not allowed to strike his opponent while he is on the ground.
  • 2. A boxer is not allowed to bite.
  • 3. When an opponent can not fight anymore, the refree stops the fight.
  • 4. Blows to the back of the opponent is not allowed.
  • 5. A boxer may not hold on to the ropes.
  • 6. Blows to the genitals are prohibted.

Victory can be obtained by knock out. A knockout occurs when a boxer is knocked down to the ground and can not continue fighting after a 10 second count by the refree. Victory is also obtained from the end of the match when judges decide by a point system which fighter was more effective. If fighters end up with the same score a draw is called.

History

Pradal Serey was developed in Cambodia around the 9th Century during the Angkor regime when the Khmer Empire dominated and controlled most of what is now Thailand, Vietnam, and Laos. It was broadly used among the Cambodian military to protect the country from being invaded by its rival nations.

The Art of Pradal Serey is a very brutal and rigorous art-form which incorporates every single part of the human body including: the hands, legs, elbows, knees and feet. It has been praciticed and passed down from generation to generation.

Pradal means fight and serey means free. Translated literally, it means "Free Fighting".

Historically Pradal Serey predates Muay Thai. This fact is well recorded in the bas-relief left behind by early Khmers in the ancient temples of Angkor Wat. Much of the writing on the ancient khmer art has either been destroyed or adopted by the invading Thai armies and governing institutions during the rise of the Thai people in the 13th century. There have been many heated debates of the true origins of kickboxing on this issue.

It is believed that Pradal Serey was a very important influence to the development of Muay Thai and other Southeast Asian forms of kickboxing.

The Near Extinction of Pradal Serey

On April 17, 1975, during the chaos of the Vietnam War, A communist group called "The Khmer Rouge" took the opportunity to overthrow the Cambodian government and rose to power. Their plan was to destroy the current Cambodia and restart it anew as a peasant country. To do so, they executed all educated people and others whom had ties to the old government(doctors, teachers, soldiers, actors, singers, Pradal Serey practioners, etc.) and threw the remaining Khmer population into labor camps, in which many died of starvation and diseases, to be re-educated under the new government. An estimated 2.5 million Cambodians died during Khmer Rouge Regime. This lasted for four years until 1979 when the Vietnamese overthrew the Khmer Rouge.

Pradal Serey had been banned during the Khmer Rouge era and many practioners were executed resulting in the art of Khmer Kickboxing being almost completely wiped out of Khmer history. Today Pradal Serey is being revived after decades of devastation and near extinction.

Pradal Serey Today

Numerous gyms have opened and large masses of students, local and foreign, have come to train in Cambodia. There are weekly matches held, in which many are televised, and many of Cambodia's best have traveled internationally to compete. There are currently schools of Pradal Serey located in Cambodia, Europe, The United States, Australia and other parts of Asia. Cambodia is trying hard to promote the sport as the Thai did with Muay Thai.

During the war, Thailand did its best to monopolize kickboxing and promoted its sport Muay Thai worldwide, and succeeded. The Thai have set up an international boxing committee in which almost 100 countries participate which lead to the why Southeast Asian kickboxing is widely known as Thai boxing. Cambodians have argued there was no such thing as Muay Siam that existed since the name change of Siam to Thailand.

At an ASEAN meeting in 1995, Thailand wanted to rename Southeast Asian kickboxing as Muay Thai or Thai Boxing. The Cambodians proposed to rename the sport as "Sovanna Phum" boxing or "SEA Boxing", which represented Thailand, Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar. Sovanna Phum means "golden land" in both the Khmer and Thai which came from the language of Pali and refers to mainland Southeast Asia. "SEA" is a popular acronym referring to Southeast Asia. Unfortunately, the Thais would not compromise.

Recent exposure of Khmer Kickboxing to the western world have come from traveling journalists and tourists. Another recent promoter of the sport is Tony Jaa. Tony is from the Surin province. He speaks Thai and Khmer, suggesting an ethnic Khmer ancestory (Rarely do Thais speak Khmer unless they are either ethnic Khmer or Chinese-Cambodian merchants). Surin is one of the last Cambodian province annexed by Thailand.

Well known Pradal Serey practitioners

Pradal Serey promoters

See also

External Links

Cambodian martial arts

 

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the "Pradal Serey".

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