Muay Thai to make debut at Paris Olympics as demonstration event

Muay Thai, the national sport of Thailand, will be featured as a demonstration event in Paris for the first time in the history of the Olympic Games.

Fighters from 24 countries will have the opportunity to showcase their skills in a specially-constructed Muay Thai stadium at Club France, laying a foundation for the fighting style to become an official Olympic event.

Muay Thai is a martial art where grace and ferocity coexist. Each strike is delivered with devastating precision, fighters push themselves to their limits, and the audience is drawn into their struggle.

With dreams of the sport making its Olympic debut growing bigger, the progress also comes with concerns that Muay Thai could lose its ancient traditions, as fighters wear little safety gear and the sport allows some moves that are banned in other forms of kickboxing. But following the sport’s Olympic recognition in 2021 after a two-decade journey, there has been a concerted effort to enhance safety by standardizing rules and improving safety protocols.

For now though, Thais are rejoicing that Muay Thai is one step closer to its Olympic dream.

"Thai people have been waiting for Muay Thai to be included in the Olympics for a long time. If it is included in the next Olympic Games in Los Angeles, it would be a huge success that is most worth the wait," said Thana Chaiprasit, vice president of the National Olympic Committee of Thailand.

As Muay Thai's popularity continues to soar, its influence is spreading far beyond its birthplace. Today there are more than 40,000 Thai boxing gyms worldwide, a growing legion of fighters.

Yet, there is one whose name stands above the rest, synonymous with both the ancient art and its modern resurgence -- Buakaw Banchamek. Boasting over 240 career wins and 74 knockouts, his influence transcends the ring as he is set to perform a Muay Thai demonstration at the 2024 Paris Olympics.

"As someone who has helped promote this martial art around the world, I want people to appreciate the art of Muay Thai. We want to develop this to be an international sport where everyone accepts its rules and regulations. This important step excites our whole country as our fighters and our art form will be included in the world's biggest sporting event," said Buakaw.

Muay Thai to make debut at Paris Olympics as demonstration event

The Palestinian death toll in Gaza Strip has risen to 50,423, with 114,638 injured, after nearly 18 months of Israeli military operations, Gaza health authorities said Wednesday.

Local medical sources noted that since the Israeli army resumed its operations on March 18, the number of fatalities has reached 1,066, while 2,597 have been injured.

In the past 24 hours alone, hospitals in Gaza received 24 fatalities and 55 injured. Many bodies remain trapped beneath the rubble, with ambulances and civil defense personnel struggling to reach them.

According to a report by the Times of Israel, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) announced on Wednesday that it had carried out strikes on over 50 sites belonging to Hamas and other militant groups, ahead of a major ground push into the southern Gaza Strip. During the day, dozens more strikes were carried out across Gaza.

In addition, the IDF issued a statement on Wednesday night that it had intercepted two rockets launched from northern Gaza. Air raid sirens were activated in areas near the Gaza Strip, and local media said that there are no reports of injuries or damage in the attack. The Al-Quds Brigades, the armed wing of Palestinian Islamic Jihad, claimed responsibility for the attack.

According to Palestinian media reports on Wednesday, the Israeli air force targeted a medical facility operated by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) in the Jabalia refugee camp in northern Gaza. The head of Gaza-based health authorities reported on the same day that 19 people were killed in the attack.

The Israeli military stated on Wednesday that it had struck a Hamas command center in Jabalia.

On Wednesday night, Al Jazeera quoted relevant sources as saying that Hamas officials had received Israel's response to the ceasefire proposal, which had been put forward by mediators and accepted by Hamas. Based on this response, they concluded that Israel had rejected the proposal.

Palestinian death toll in Gaza rises to 50,423