Son knocked a boy out in first thai fight? should i be proud of him or not?

Question

my 11yo son as recently took up this sport and in is first fight knocked the other boy out.

everyone is very proud of him and saying well done and stuff. But i dont feel proud of him

should i feel proud or not

Answer 1

This is disturbing for me because of the ages of the competitors. They are much to young for full contact martial arts. You are right to feel disconcerted. Any time a knock out is involved there is a concussion to the brain. Over time this takes a tole on the brain. In the USA full contact fighting is prohibited  in children under a certain age. I'm not sure what age but certainly the age is older than 11. You are OK to be proud of your sons abilities as an athlete. I know as a parent part of me would be very proud of my sons or daughters for their abilities. I also would be very very worried.

Aside from the medical aspects of full contact at that young of an age a child's character is still being formed. Controlled contact fighting brings a kind of discipline and self control that will sustain your son for a life time. Think long term. Ask yourself where will my son be in 30 years? What will he be like? These are the issues that keep a parent awake at night. A persons development is part nature and nurture. How much we can influence a child's path we will never be certain. that only thing we can now is that we are an influence. And the events in a persons life shape them to some degree for good or bad.

Tough decisions. Parenting is certainly not for wimps, is it?

By your concern I know you will do what is best. Only you will know the best answer.

Answer 2

as long as he isn't knocking people out on the streets, yes why wouldn't you be proud? not very many people win their first full contact fight

Answer 3

In my personal opinion, 11 years old is too young to allow head contact from punches or kicks, but to each their own.

I think you should be proud of him winning, but don't emphasize the KO part.

He may win future fights by decision and you should be just a proud.  I wouldnt make a big distinction between winning by KO and winning by decision.

James

Answer 4

yes, of course.. you should be proud of your son but at the same time you should help him maintain his discipline.. bec. there's a big difference in knocking someone out in competition and in a real life fight... in competition, you fight your opponent with honor not bec. of pure brawling. in a real fight, you knock someone out to defend yourself.

Answer 5

you should feel great for him!

Answer 6

you should be proud- he did well at his chosen hobby- its not like he is accosting people in the streets and beating on them.

you are a poor father or a nancy if you aren't proud.

Answer 7

Yes if it was a competition, he followed the rules, and did not humiliate the other student.  You must realize this is a sport and their should be no anger involved.

Answer 8

lol yeah. i mean your son could of been the one knocked out instead of the other.

Answer 9

You should be very proud of your son.

If he took up the sport, and fought, and won! he's obviously dedicated, and he's obviously training hard.

A lot goes into being a fighter. Mentally and physically it's very demanding. For an 11 year old to be involved in the sport and competing and still going to school, not just that but fighting and knocking his opponent out? Man, I don't even know this kid but I'm proud of him!

A lot of people get this misconception about martial artists, especially those that actually fight. They don't understand it, honestly. They see it as brutal and unnecessary. What you need to understand like those that answered before me said, there's not anger in it. It isn't violence for the sake of violence. It is a sport. And it's a unique sport in the sense of camaraderie between fighters. The amount of respect that exists between two well trained martial artists. It's unlike anything else. It's not unusual to see two fighters hug and congratulate each other after a hard fight. It's not about the violence. It's about honor, it's about respect.

I know that sounds really cliche, but that's really what it boils down to. My mom passed away a few years ago. Before she died I decided to take up mixed martial arts. When no one else believed in my dream, and told me it was too silly, too violent, she alone encouraged me to train and follow my dream. That alone has motivated me and encouraged me along the way. I'm sure it'd mean a lot to your son if you told him that you were proud of him and you were there to support him.

Answer 10

He obviously enjoys the sport and is willing to work hard at it. I think you should be proud that he is willing to show such dedication to something.

But I personally don't like it when people celebrate their victory when it comes at the expense of someone else's injury.

If he want to dedicate himself to Thai boxing then he ought to have the willingness to knock someone out during tournament otherwise he could get hurt, but he should also have some self control as well.

You'll want to remind him that real life is far from a tournament and he doesn't need to always fight.

Answer 11

You should feel proud only if the goal of the excercise was to knock out the opponent. I doubt that was the case.

OTOH, if it was an accidental KO, well, it's a tough sport.

If your son fought harder than was necessary, with the intention to commit mayhem, you should NOT be proud.

As a military veteran who abhors fighting, if you're forced to FIGHT, one must fight to kill, thus ending the fight.

Training and practice do not need to go to such extremes.

Answer 12

You will probably get a lot of mixed answers on this.  In the U.S. children are not allowed to fight to a knock out in any state sanctioned contact sport like the Silver Gloves.  Most in the medical community would find this disturbing as it is thought that any heavy contact to the head for children is detrimental to their health.  I would question as to why the referee let it go to this point especially if it was an accumulation of blows or a mismatch.  

I think on the one hand you can be proud of him for doing well and at the same time show concern about this and if it is routine for things to go that far for children this young.  Most sanctioned fighting sports have a domination rule whereby a referee is obligated to step in and stop a mismatch or stop a fight before it reaches that point for people as young as this and you might want to ask that question or ask if this is an organized, regulated, and sanctioned event.  Some of the states here have tightened down on this and no longer let children fight anything more than exhibition matches where there is no winner or loser, no scoring of rounds takes place, and a state licensed referee has to be used to referee such a match.

Answer 13

Yes you should. Your son is excelling in something that is important to him. As long as he feels it to be an achievement then you should feel prie in the fact that your boy has reached a goal. If you are against your son fighting he should be told immediatly, otherwise cheer him on and take pride in his victories.

Answer 14

Where do you live that they allow full contact muy thai for 11 year olds?

Answer 15

Well, professionally speaking, you must be proud. It's a competition, i bet it has even a waiver upon entering in it, saying that you're not gonna violate any laws upon the injury of of your son's competitor. Your son's training just proved that he's the better fighter than his adversary. What would you feel if your kid was the one who got knocked out instead of the other kid? That will make you feel bad about yourself, i suppose. C'mon, be supportive. It's a competition, a combat sport for the matter. It's just like any other sport where there's a winner and the not so lucky ones. Encourage your son to train more so he'd love the sport more. See, sports can even take away your son from vices, bad peers, drugs,etc. So he'd only conjure up his time and training,plus, a kid whose sport is Martial Arts are inclined to with discipline and dedication. Which choice will you make? Which one would you like to see in the future? Your son in the streets with some unruly friends?   Or him training in a gym and winning fights? So be proud, support your kid, encourage him to do his best in whatever he does. And, congrats to your son,man.

Answer 16

well you should be proud of your son for being involved in martial arts and being focused and performing well.

That being said I have to agree with some other people in that I dont really think 11 is the right age for full contact muay thai. I certainly hope they were wearing headgear and decent gloves?

Answer 17

Was the other kid actually knocked unconscious or was it a knock down and the kid didn't get up quick enough and steadily enough that the ref stopped the fight?

How do you now feel about letting your son fight knowing he might get knocked out?

One of the problems I see in letting youngsters fight is that at these ages people develop at different rates and have growth spurts and so you could have a fight that is a physical mismatch.

Finally

YES be proud of your son, I am sure with it being his first time in the ring he was nervous and he managed to control his emotions and perform well. The knock out may have been lucky in that a well executed technique coincided with the opponent moving into the punch or it may just have been a very well executed technique. Either way your son performed well in a stressful situation. It's like a top grade in his 11+ exam at school. So be proud that he performed well, but I wouldn't over emphasise the KO.

Answer 18

I would be proud of him if he won in a competition in the context of the rules, as it is a good accomplishment.

I would however question how wise it is to lete children that age fight to a knockout when their brains are still developing. Ever seen an old boxer that can't remember their name or what day it is?

I would be very careful with the amount of head contact that is allowed at his age.

You should be proud, but just be aware letting them fight this hard at his age could have long term effects. yes there are injuries in many sorts, but not many sports pound on each other the way fighting does.

Answer 19

Don't feel proud, but don't blame him either.  You can't be proud of the rain for being wet, or ashamed of it.  You can't be proud of fire being hot.

If he is a fighter, he will get knocked out.  That is what being a fighter is, and that is the way of things.  Just make sure your son learns from it, and continues to train.  Always a student.