People around the world are familiar with Karate. A martial art that delivers punching, kicking, elbow strikes and knee strikes to the opponent. Though originated from Japan, it was influenced by Chinese martial arts such as the Fujian White Crane technique. The practitioner is called a karateka. Okinawa is the birthplace of this martial art. By the time Okinawa became a US military base after World War II, some US servicemen studied this fighting style and have grown fond of it. The said martial art become very popular abroad in the 60’s and 70’s, thanks to the proliferation of movies that showed oriental fighting styles.
Another popular martial art that hails from Thailand is called Muay Thai. It was born from an ancient fighting style called Muay Boran or ancient boxing. Muay Boran may likely have gotten its influenced from other Asian martial arts such as Krabi Krabong, Pradal and Chinese combat styles. It uses the limbs to deliver an attack or block an attack. Because of this, Thai martial art deployed a combination of fists, knees, elbows and legs toward an opponent. It rose to international fame when a group of its practitioners defeated other notable martial artists in the 20th century. Now many countries in the world have professional fighters.
A World Muay Thai Council was set up to oversee the sport around the globe. It sets up standards and procedures to be followed by practicing countries. For this fighting style is also a sport not just for self-defense. The technique is to use the so called eight limbs. This composed of the use of hands, elbows, knees and shins. Each of these limbs can be used for defense and striking. The blow is concentrated to incapacitate the opponent quickly. For example, a kick boxer grabs his enemy’s leg. Then he hits it hard with his elbow. The opponent’s leg then becomes sore.
In Karate, there are many styles involved. Depending on the teacher or the type of tournament a practitioner is involved; some moves are not permitted to strike certain body targets. For example in the Kyoushin style, a karateka is not allowed to hit the head with his hands. He has to use his legs deliver a kick on that part of his opponent’s body. This affects the stance. Often wider stances are used by most practitioners. This allows delivering quick and precise kicks to certain body parts. But whatever martial art should be used, it all depends on the person’s preferences.
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