Thread: Dying in the ring

A few Thai boxers die in the ring every year, or so I've heard. I believe it because there's almost no way it isn't true. I believe that knees to the head are the cause of most of these deaths. Damage doesn't even need to accumulate with that stuff. One solid knee from someone with power can break your neck and sever your spinal chord.

Repeated and powerful head trauma can cause the retina to detach, resulting in blindness.

Trama to the brain from a single strike delivered correctly with enough force can cause damage to the brain. This damage could cause paralysis, Blindness, loss of the ability to speak, Loss of sensory perception. Swelling of the brain leading to death.


Repeated hits can take their toll as well. even less powerful hits can over time do great damage to brain function.


There were a few deaths in the last few years in TKD point sparring tournaments. 1 in california and one in denmark that were documented. I would imagine that full contact Thai matches would have even a greater number of deaths. Especially outside of the US or Europe due to the lack of medical care.


I knew a foot ball player that was playing a game and he scored a touchdown. one of his team mates ran up and smacked downward on the top of his head and he was instantly paralyzed. He had something wrong with his spine that had not been diagnosed previously.

Heck even little league baseball loses a kid or two a year from balls smacking into a kids heart stopping it and killing the kid.

With all things there are risks though.


Best thing is to learn not to take full force shots, especially in the head.

Oh and don't block with your face.

Speaking of Thai fighters dying...

I just find it very disturbing when fighters die period. Not just fighters, but athletes. People who die for no apparant reason. They just drop dead.

Like Nanfah, or ChatChai Paeseethong when speaking of Thai boxers. Or that skating champion who died in his hotel room. People in the prime of their life who just suddenly drop dead while doing mundane tasks. Not the Corey Stringers of the world who push themselves too hard, too fast.

Sorry for the OT post...

Khun Kao

Um, few people actually die right in the ring. This is in part because the Thais are very superstitious about dying in the ring. I saw a guy get knocked out cold at Lumpenee Stadium. What ensued shocked me. The guys came into the ring with a stretcher and basically threw him onto the stretcher and literally ran out of the ring. The poor guy's head got caught on one of the ropes and he nearly came off the stretcher before they caught him.

I was shocked the first time I saw that as well. I was watching a fight where one fighter threw a high round kick, his opponent leaned back hard into the ropes as the kick went by. As he rebounded off the ropes, the other fighter kept his momentum and came back around with a spinning elbow and caught him square in the side of the head. The guy dropped like a sack of spanky potatos and did not get back up. The ref gets down and grabs his head and starts shaking it trying to wake him up, blood is pouring out of the guys mouth. Next thing you know, two guys run into the ring, grab the guy and practically throw him onto the stretcher, and race back out looking like the two guys who race around to bring you that giant bowl of ice cream on a stretcher at Farrels Ice Cream parlor. The guy was bouncing all over the place and practically fell off. Quite scary.

William