As you know, The first Thai kingdom of Suhkothai, emerged after the Khmers were driven out in the early 13th century, was later absorbed by another Thai state which was established as the Ayuthaya kingdom in 1351 A.D by Ramathibodi I.

Pradal Serey/Kun Khmer (Khmer KickBoxing) was created in Cambodia from 802 A.D (King Jayavarman II ) to 1309 A.D( King Jayavarman VII) 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 of Cambodia from being invaded by its neighbors.

The difference is war in Cambodia and stability and peace in Thailand in previous years. As a result, tourists can only visit Thailand and learn about the Thai culture and tradition. So Thai culture and its tradition was Cambodian in origin, but the Thailand and its people do not educate the world and their people the truth, even there is Angkor Wat as the evidence.

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

Historically Pradal Serey/Kun Khmer predated 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 this 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. Pradal Serey was a very important influence to the development of Muay Thai and other Southeast Asian forms of kickboxing.

The country regained stability when it came under French protection in 1863 and became part of the French Colony of Indochina in 1884. Cambodian kings were still revered by the people but had few powers under the 90 years of French rule. Since Kun Khmer (Pradal Serey) was doing bare knuckle and bound fists, French introduced gloves and proper ring with rules and regulation. Becuase of Kun Khmer (Pradal Srey) simply called Khmer Kickboxing, French developed their Kickboxing called SAVATE the combination of Western Boxing and kicks, Knees and elbows into their sport most likely practice by the French sailors during that time. With proper gloves,ring, rules and regulations for the safety Khmer put this sport in the ring in 1890s followed by Thai in 1920s.

THE NEARLY 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 destroyed all documents, executed all educated people and others whom had ties to the old government (doctors, teachers, soldiers, actors, singers,Pradal Serey practitioners, 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 or Kun Khmer had been banned during the Khmer Rouge era and because of this, the art of Khmer Kickboxing had almost become completely wiped out of Khmer history while Thai has all the access lying to the world through Television such as ESPN, HBO and so on. Today Pradal Serey/Kun Khmer is being revived after decades of devastation and near extinction.

PRADAL SEREY/KUN KHMER 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.

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, while Cambodian government was busy fighting against corruption, the Thais would not compromise and the world still being blind even such as evidences on Greatest Angkor Wat. However and whatever claims those countries bordering Cambodia made, the truth to the roots of their cultures could be traced back to the Khmer Empire by means of the great Angkor Wat, the Khmer Classical and Traditional Dances, Khmer Musical Instruments, etc. That's an undeniable fact.

Now that the Khmer Rouge era is behind us for good and Cambodian government is fighting against corruption, Cambodians will focus on claiming their heritage back and becoming stronger and stronger as more Khmers came to realize and interested in learning about their rich heritage. When all Khmers stop fighting each other and have peace and stability like Thailand, the world may be surprise to see what Khmer people can do. The war really hindered growth and prosperity in Cambodia, so I am asking for the unity of Cambodian to rebuilding the country and its cultures and together the world will know the true about Cambodia, her culture, and most importantly know the true about our Khmer kick boxing predated Muay Thai.

    KUN KHMER PRESIDENT (USA)