Imagine Manchester in 1975. A Thai teacher called Thohsaphol Sitiwatjana has just arrived in England. People call him Master Toddy. He opens a gym in Manchester and starts to teach Muay Thai. 9
Master Toddy is known as the "Father of English Muay Thai". 9
Three masters
The Kru Muaythai Association in Thailand tells the story a little more widely. It says that in 1975 three Thai masters began teaching Muay Thai in Europe: Master Toddy, Master Woody, whose full name is Chinawut Sirisompan, and Master Sken Kaewpadung. 32
The first British groups
The British Thai Boxing Council, the , says it was founded in Manchester in 1979. 46
Master Sken's own association was first called SIMTA. Its own history gives two dates, 1981 and 1986. Since 2010 it has been the Master Sken Association, the . 47 Its students wear coloured armbands as grades: white, then yellow, green, blue and brown, and children can go on to red. 47
A teacher from America
Ajarn Chai Sirisute founded the World Thai Boxing Association, the , in the United States. In 1989 the WTBA came to Britain, with a seminar in Glasgow. 33
Grades with colours
Old Thai camps had no grades, only teachers and pupils. 32 Master Woody created a set of grades for the Kru Muaythai Association, using coloured headbands. Teaching ranks wear headbands based on red, a master wears silver and a grandmaster gold. 32 The association lists 31 members in the UK. 32
Muay Thai had come a long way from Ayutthaya. The last step was to make it a sport that the whole world could share.