It’s hard to believe but it’s already been one year since muaythai under IFMA made its debut at The World Games – joining the IWGA family in Wroclaw, Poland. It was a great experience for everyone , and to celebrate you can now watch the muaythai finals from TWG2017 on The Olympic Channel. (link below)
Reaching The World Games was the pinnacle of years of work both by muaythai athletes in continually raising the standards in our sport, and behind-the-scenes work by many officials and supporters of amateur muaythai.
Remembering the exciting event, IFMA general secretary Stephan Fox said: “One year on, we relive the beautiful memories from Wroclaw. For muaythai it was an event of sporting achievement but also new friends. One of the standouts for me was seeing the giant Hansel and Gretel mascots, bringing the IWGA message to the athletes – the value of working together, protecting each other and moving together to a new future.”
It was an unforgettable experience for the athletes – sharing campus accommodation with athletes from other sports and getting to know more about the sports family.
The beautiful city of Wroclaw welcomed everyone, with the cheerful and helpful volunteers really standing out in everyone’s memory. There was a real sense of community during the busy days of the competition, and this left a positive impression.
All this week you can watch highlights from the 222 gold medal bouts in all sports, including of course muaythai on The Olympic Channel. See the full muaythai finals here.
And of course the high standard of competition was impressive, with every competing athlete selected and qualified over an difficult series of tournaments. This included the World Championships 2016 in Sweden and the World Championships 2017 in Minsk. So the packed sports hall – sold out every day – appreciated they were seeing the best of the best from amateur muaythai in action.
Hagen Bossdorf, IWGA TV and New Media Officer, said: “Thanks to the live coverage during the Games in Wroclaw, our event could be seen world-wide for the first time in its history. At the same time, broadcasting the competitions was an outstanding success for the Olympic Channel. The anniversary programme demonstrates the fascination of our sports and gives a fine impression of the biggest sporting event in Poland”.
The impact of TWG2017 continues, with Russian muaythai athlete Svetlana Vinnikova named May Athlete of the Month when The World Games 2017 champion won again in the muaythai rings. She won the gold medal at the World Championships held in Cancun Mexico, for the second.
Dmitry Putilin, head of the Russian Muaythai Federation said Svetlana is a great role model for anyone – boys or girls – looking to take up muaythai, and said the sport has given her opportunities to change her life.
Join us on to celebrate The World Games 2017:
Watch the muaythai finals at The World Games on The Olympic Channel
Meet the muaythai athletes from The World Games 2017 on:
