Everything You Need to Know about Kickboxing

Richard Hill
3 min readMar 31, 2022

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As its name suggests, kickboxing is a hybrid martial arts discipline that combines elements of kicking and punching. In some competitions, knee and elbow strikes, throws, and even headbutts are allowed, but major sanctioning bodies like the International Kickboxing Federation do not allow these techniques in official competitions. Like American-style boxing, most kickboxing bouts take place in a ring, and competitors typically wear boxing-style gloves and other protective gear. The sport is also similar to boxing in that participants can win by knockout or judges’ decision, which is based on points awarded during each round of competition.

Although kickboxing competitions share many similarities with American-style boxing, the roots of the sport lie in the Thailand-based martial art of Muay Thai. This discipline dates back to the 13th and 14th centuries when Siamese soldiers practiced an ancient form of boxing known as Muay Boran. Over the years, Muay Boran evolved from a system of combat and self-defense to a form of physical exercise and, eventually, a sport with a set of rules and accompanying protective gear. By the 1920s, this sport was known as Muay Thai.

A Japanese boxing promoter named Osamu Noguchi is typically credited with using Muay Thai to form the basis of kickboxing. After being introduced to the art of Muay Thai, Noguchi organized a competition between three karate practitioners and three Muay Thai practitioners in 1966. This fueled his desire to develop a karate-like style of martial art that allowed full-contact striking, which the Japanese karate tournaments did not allow. With the help of Kenji Kurosaki, one of the three karate practitioners who took on the Muay Thai competitors in the mid-1960s, Noguchi developed the new fighting style, which soon became known as kickboxing.

Kickboxing reached the United States in the 1970s. Most of the fighters at the time came from karate backgrounds, and many of them found the full-contact bouts to be much more taxing than the karate competitions with which they were familiar. To improve their physical and mental conditioning, they adopted training methods typical of Western boxing, and this helped improve the level of competition and the sport of kickboxing as a whole. As the sport improved, its popularity grew worldwide, and various sanctioning bodies were established to oversee competitions in the U.S. and Europe.

Today, there are several kickboxing organizations that hold events across the globe, including the International Sport Kickboxing Association, the World Kickboxing Association, and the World Association of Kickboxing Organizations. There are also many different kickboxing types and sub-styles practiced in different parts of the world. Many people even take part in a form of cardio kickboxing, which uses fighting punches and kicks entirely for fitness purposes.

While kickboxing stands strong as a sport all its own, it has also played a major role in the development of mixed martial arts (MMA) in recent years. To succeed in the sport, MMA fighters need a solid foundation in both striking and grappling, and many develop their striking skills by practicing kickboxing. A number of successful kickboxers have transitioned to MMA and been very successful in the octagon. Other fighters have gotten their start in MMA and then transitioned to professional kickboxing full time. Some of the best kickboxers of all time include Mark Hunt, Alistair Overeem, Benny Urquidez, and Giorgio Petrosyan.

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Richard Hill
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Dr. Richard Hill is a medical doctor serving as the medical director for Lab Doctor in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.