I can't believe it. I have a 7yr old son and to see him in the ring being basically being beat up... well I would'nt let it happen. How can these "mothers" let it happen. Kids get taken into care for less than this.Why does this country allow this when mothers wiv kids that skip school get put in prison. I really feel sick. These kids are doing to make there under achieving parents feel better. If you didn't make it leave your kids alone .

If people encourage dogs to fight they are prosecuted. Why, therefore, are they allowed to encourage their own children to behave worse than animals ? They (the parents) need locking up!

Disgusting! social services should get involved and remove those children, or they will end up dead or in jail before long

This was just totally disturbing to watch!
How can a parent encourage this kind of so called sport?
I think it should be banned.
The parents who allowed their child to fight without the protective body kit on well words just fail me.....

I n additon- as a Primary school teacher who has seen many a junior football girl and boys match- are you really shocked by the language and attitude portrayed by the parents???

quote:

Originally posted by sickened:
Comletely sickening. I have just e mailed the NSPCC to report this abuse and urged them to investigate these sick people. Please do the same if you were as upset by it as I was and help these kids. They are obviously terrified of their bullying parents.

I agree totally

All I saw in this programme were 'adults' ( I use that term very loosely) acting out their dreams/ failings/ inadequacies through their children. It gives the sport of Muay Thai, for which I have trained in for the past 18 years, a bad name. They are far too young, and the decision to undertake it was never theirs, pushed into it by unfit, underachieving adults. I wish the children the best for their future, but do not associate the adults in any way with my time honoured sport.

The way they are presuring those children like profesionals thai boxes is disgusting, they are just children. Also they are introducing those young children into an environtment of gambling is just wrong,i'm sorprised that is legal.

I did find the prog at certain bits disturbing. I don't agree with the parents trying to live theie life through their kids life. But my girl who is 6 does tae kwon do and she really enjoys it but i don't think i would allow her to do thai boxing unless she was old enough to decide that for herself.

This is absolutely outrageous. It was good of channel 4 to bring awareness of the situation however this infliction of pressure and abuse should be banned. How dare any parents raise their children in an environment where violence is imperative to their upbringing and culture? Its disgusting.

I was so incensed and shocked by what I witnessed, that for the first time ever I have felt the need to make my disgust known. What makes the whole worse was that these people could see no wrong. The sight of one parent shouting " kick her kick her" sickened me. there is no excuse for this, no matter what the small minded views of the parent. Young kids should not suffer this, for the vanity of the parents, who seem to be living their fantasies through their kids suffering.Children should be allowed to be children, god knows this world will give them enough problems without this.

Watching programmes like this gives me 100% reassurance that the campaign I launched to protect children and professional people within the sports and leisure industry is most definitely required.

Parents showing no respect for themselves, their children and also people who are professionals at their sport is the only way to describe the content of this programme.

Help us help children to be protected from parents like this..

quote:

Originally posted by i_need_support_here:
yeh, that was great kids scrapping for my entertainment. I try to get my kids to fight when im bored but they are wimps.

Is that supposed to be funny???

Well done channel 4, you have helped to destroy martial arts as a practice. You did not try to interview any of the officials or other coaches or indeed other families participatingin in the sport to get a fuller picture of what goes on.

This program was aimed at people who have no clue about what goes on in the sport martial art world.

There is nothing but total control when children fight each other. They have so much padding on its virtually impossible to hurt each other.

Its clear from the clueless replies to the shocked masses that your job is done!

Its also clear that you too are clueless about what goes on. The editor has done a good job there on turning what goes on into barbaric fighting!

Well chosen families too! You know how to pick em!

My 7 yr old son has unfortunatley inherited from his dad a very short temper ,since begining thai boxing a year ago he has learn't to control his temper.He has the opportunity to release any anger or frustrations in a controled and safe manner.I can only speak for the club that we train with ,but it is run exactly as the karate and kickboxing clubs i have been a member of over the years.control,fitness,tecnique and most importantly respesct are taught.This documentary only showed the fight side of thai boxing,many children train at this art but only a few take it to the highest levels of competion.As is found in ALL sports some parents do push their kids hard,but if the cameras had followed a club and showed the variety of children who are members and the reasons for them training you would be able to see that not all are in it to fight in competition.They train because it is something they enjoy.some kids love football ,others like snooker,some girls enter beauty pagents! Every child is unique and should be encouraged to fulfill their own individual potential in whatever they enjoy.Please remember that this was a tv programme who's aim is to get ratings so i can understand how to someone who has never attended a thai boxing class at a club how brutal the sport appears.I love my son and want to protect him but to do that i also have to make sure he grows up a balanced,confident and independent individual.Thai boxing is helping him to become that person.

I found this program so utterly disburbing....particularly the quote from the dad saying 'come on take it like a man'.

He is a little boy, how on earth can he 'take it like a man' !!

If ever there was a case of the goverment to step in and ban a particular 'sport' then NOW is the time.

I think the parents are extremley ignorant, for goodness sake they are CHILDREN.

quote:

Originally posted by DaltyWalty:
i have to agree, i think the shock value is due to the makers rather than the sport and we can all sit and slag it off at how disgusted we were but we still sat and watched the programme. It may say more about us an audience

We watched it because we could not believe what we were watching, dont you watch tragic events unfold on the news?

i dont agree with the violence and i dont think for a second its right to promote it in children but as for the pushy parents, i can't see any difference between these and pushy parents of dancing and football playing children

The RSPCA ban dog fighting this is not disimilar!! A disgrace!!! Adults living THEIR failed dreams through their children UNBELIEVEABLE!!!

Words fail me, I have never watched anything so repulsive. Young children fighting in cages, what on earth are their parents (if that's what you can call them) thinking of- themselves!! that's what, they were all living their dreams and aspirations through their children instead of letting the children get on with finding their own way in life.

i have a 3 year old son that has just started kickboxing, he enjoys going and it is a game to him were he can learn to defend himself when he is older but i would never let him get in a ring and fight other kids. he can learn the moves use the pads and gain the disaplin. i would NEVER sign to say that it is ok for my son to go in a ring and maybe DIE. this program was sick and the parents need to let there kids have their childhood back

quote:

Originally posted by laugar:
Well done channel 4, you have helped to destroy martial arts as a practice. You did not try to interview any of the officials or other coaches or indeed other families participatingin in the sport to get a fuller picture of what goes on.

This program was aimed at people who have no clue about what goes on in the sport martial art world.

There is nothing but total control when children fight each other. They have so much padding on its virtually impossible to hurt each other.

Its clear from the clueless replies to the shocked masses that your job is done!

Its also clear that you too are clueless about what goes on. The editor has done a good job there on turning what goes on into barbaric fighting!

Well chosen families too! You know how to pick em!

Agree!

I agree children of a certain age should not be allowed to take part competitively and i think the parents involved will be shocked at how they have been portraid in this prog.

As mentioned ive been in the sport for over 10 years now and this is certainly now how i have ever seen children involved in the sport. Personnaly i would have had a word with the parents had i been present and heard the language involved.

My boy's only 2 1/2 but nobody messes with him.
And when he hurts himself he never cries. He just grits his teeth.
Give him a couple of years....

This is because of his heritage and DNA. His mum's Thai and has herself seen the inside of a boxing ring in Chiangrai. According to the story she won the grand total of £1.50 in her first fight!

As an instructor and judge of thai boxing i am sad to say that the program, as with all press, shows the minority of bad in a good sport. in our governing body W.M.F. (world muay thai federation) which is an amature body, the clubs have a syllabus to teach discipline, self defence and respect. the show picked out what they thought the public wanted to see, (kind of BEAR BAITING) it would have been a diferent story if they had come to our gym.