A Cambodian Boxer Clarifies He Never Train Muay Thai
As Kun Khmer and Muay Thai are topics that have been widely debated by Cambodians and Thais for several years, a recent claim said a Cambodian golden medalist used to be trained the Thai boxing before changing to his native fight. The claim has been widely shared, reacted to, and commented on by social media users. However, after an interview with the Cambodian boxer, we found out the claim was misleading.
SOCIAL MEDIA CLAIM
A Facebook page posted a claim that the Cambodian Kun Khmer boxer Chhut Serey Vannthong who was the golden medalist in the SEA Game last year used to be trained in Muay Thai in his childhood but changed to Kun Khmer later.
The claim came with a combination of photos of the Cambodian boxer wearing a short trouser printed with the Thai words “Muay Thai” when he was young and his current photo.
The Facebook post has been shared many times as many Facebook users expressed their reactions and comments, questioning whether it was true.
Below is the capture of the Facebook post circulated on social media last month saying “[He] got trained in Muay Thai in childhood; becomes a Kun Khmer fighter after growing up.”
After the claim circulation, many Khmer-speaking social media users questioned whether the post was true and wanted clarification from the golden medalist.
FACT CHECK
Fact Crescendo Cambodia began debunking the claim above by interviewing the Kun Khmer boxer. Then, we got the facts below after his clarification.
By reviewing comments from Facebook users, we found the Cambodian Kun Khmer boxer Chhut Serey Vannthong clarified on his personal social media page on April 01, 2024.
Vannthong dismissed the claim above, saying he wore the short trousers printed with the Thai words “Muay Thai” because the boxing organizers told him to do so when he went to fight in an arena in Thailand more than 10 years ago.
Below is the capture of Vannthong clarification on his personal social media page saying “At the time, I wore the short trousers because I went to fight in Thailand, which I knocked out the competitor at round 3.”
In a response to an inquiry from Fact Crescendo Cambodia, Vannthong said he has never gone to train Muay Thai; he only got training from his father in Cambodia.
He clarified the photo of him wearing the short trousers in childhood when he competed in a boxing arena organized by Thai community along Cambodia-Thailand border in 2013.
The 24-year-old Kun Khmer boxer added he had fought boxing since his childhood in order to earn money to support his study from primary level until the end of the high school.
Below is the interview between Fact Crescendo Cambodia and Chhut Serey Vannthong on April 05, 2024.
Vannthong won the golden medal in the 32nd SEA Game hosted by Cambodia last year. He is one of Cambodian famous Kun Khmer boxers.
CONCLUSION
Fact Crescendo Cambodia found out the claim mentioned earlier was misleading. Cambodia’s SEA Game golden medalist Chhut Serey Vannthong dismissed the claim. He clarified he has never trained in Muay Thai, and that he has been trained by his father since childhood.
