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Myanmar Lethwei Federation (MLF) () formerly known as ''Myanmar Traditional Lethwei Federation'' is one of two major organizations which sanctions professional
The Myanmar Lethwei Federation or MLF is a branch of the Myanmar's Ministry of Health and Sports. The federation was initially founded in 1995 as the Myanmar Traditional Boxing Federation, since Lethwei is translated to Boxing in
Lethwei
Lethwei (; International Phonetic Alphabet, IPA: ) or Burmese boxing is a Full contact fighting, full contact combat sport originating from Myanmar and is considered as one of the most brutal martial arts in the world.}
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bouts worldwide and the only one who oversees Lethwei competitions in Myanmar
Myanmar, officially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar; and also referred to as Burma (the official English name until 1989), is a country in northwest Southeast Asia. It is the largest country by area in Mainland Southeast Asia and has ...
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History
The Myanmar Lethwei Federation or MLF is a branch of the Myanmar's Ministry of Health and Sports. The federation was initially founded in 1995 as the Myanmar Traditional Boxing Federation, since Lethwei is translated to Boxing in Burmese language
Burmese (; ) is a Tibeto-Burman languages, Tibeto-Burman language spoken in Myanmar, where it is the official language, lingua franca, and the native language of the Bamar people, Bamar, the country's largest ethnic group. Burmese dialects are a ...
. In 2019, the federation adapted its name to the MTLF - Myanmar Traditional Lethwei Federation, reflecting a more modern approach to the world and later updated it to Myanmar Lethwei Federation.
Since 1990's, MLF has been the sponsor of Thein Pyu Stadium in Yangon
Yangon, formerly romanized as Rangoon, is the capital of the Yangon Region and the largest city of Myanmar. Yangon was the List of capitals of Myanmar, capital of Myanmar until 2005 and served as such until 2006, when the State Peace and Dev ...
, Myanmar
Myanmar, officially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar; and also referred to as Burma (the official English name until 1989), is a country in northwest Southeast Asia. It is the largest country by area in Mainland Southeast Asia and has ...
and holds an office space in the premise.
In 2016, the MLF granted a ‘’Grade-A’’ promoter licence from the International Lethwei Federation Japan allowing them to organize traditional Lethwei
Lethwei (; International Phonetic Alphabet, IPA: ) or Burmese boxing is a Full contact fighting, full contact combat sport originating from Myanmar and is considered as one of the most brutal martial arts in the world.}
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events in Japan.
Banning Leduc
On April 28, 2021,Dave Leduc
Dave Leduc (born 13 December 1991) is a Canadian-Burmese Lethwei fighter. He is a former six-time Lethwei world champion who held the Lethwei Golden Belt#Openweight champions, Openweight Lethwei World Championship and was undefeated under Lethwei ...
criticized Muay Thai
Muay Thai or Muaythai (, , ), sometimes referred to as Thai boxing, the Art of Eight Limbs or the Science of Eight Limbs, is a Thai martial art and full-contact combat sport that uses stand-up striking, sweeps, and various clinch fighting, cl ...
fighter Buakaw Banchamek and historical figure Nai Khanom Tom in a social media post. Leduc questioned the veracity and claimed that the Nai Khanom Tom folklore story is exaggerated and that he was simply a prisoner in ancient Burma
Myanmar, officially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar; and also referred to as Burma (the official English name until 1989), is a country in northwest Southeast Asia. It is the largest country by area in Mainland Southeast Asia and ha ...
, referring to Siamese prisoners captured by Burmese troops during the Burmese–Siamese War. The post sparked considerable backlash from the Muaythai and combat sports community. In a letter, the Myanmar Traditional Lethwei Federation explained that ''Muaythai promoters made a complaint about Leduc''. Muaythai promoter Nuttadaj Vachirarattanawong urged the MTLF to reprimand Leduc. According to the MTLF, Leduc had "committed personal attacks" on Buakaw Banchamek and Muaythai history potentially tarnishing the relationship between Myanmar and Thailand. The federation issued a two-year ban Lethwei competitions under the MTLF. There were speculations that the ban was political due to Leduc denouncing the 2021 Myanmar coup d'état
A coup d'état in Myanmar began on the morning of 1 February 2021, when Elections in Myanmar, democratically elected members of the country's ruling party, the National League for Democracy (NLD), were deposed by the Tatmadaw, Myanmar's milita ...
and supporting the freedom movement in the Myanmar.
In response to the letter, Dave Leduc wrote on social media: ''"They’re not the World Lethwei Federation (WLF), the WLF is the most powerful, they have affiliated federations all the world ..Nobody in the world tells me anything. The World Lethwei Federation can’t, and especially not the MTLF"'' ''"They made an “official letter” saying they ban me from their federation “for 2 years” Am I supposed to care? Not only do I not care, I will go further and say: I will never fight in their federation (MTLF) ever again."'' Leduc added.
See also
* List of Lethwei fighters * World Lethwei Federation * International Lethwei Federation Japan * World Lethwei ChampionshipReferences
External links
* * {{Sports governing bodies in Myanmar MTLFLethwei
Lethwei (; International Phonetic Alphabet, IPA: ) or Burmese boxing is a Full contact fighting, full contact combat sport originating from Myanmar and is considered as one of the most brutal martial arts in the world.}
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Sports organizations established in 1995