IMBA

The International Muay Boran Academy (IMBA) is the first international school devoted to the development of traditional Thai unarmed fighting disciplines (since 1993). IMBA has been created thanks to the dedication of one of the most renowned worldwide exponents of Muay Thai, the Italian Master Marco De Cesaris . In the last few years the International Muay Boran Academy has successfully created a global network of highly qualified Muay Thai Boran instructors, in Europe, Latin America and Oceania. Over the past 20 years, the International Academy founded by Master Marco De Cesaris, has concentrated all its efforts on the re-organization and dissemination of Thailand’s forgotten unarmed combat techniques. The conventional name chosen to denote this ancient martial discipline was Muay Thai Boran; a set of forgotten techniques designed over the centuries by the Kingdom of Siam’s masters. Muay Thai Boran as it is practised in all IMBA Branches worldwide is fully combat oriented: its main goal is making men and women ready for all-out fighting. For this reason, all IMBA members are welcome to take part in technical seminars held regularly; advanced seminars are devoted to the deeper understandings of ancient fighting techniques and strategies (i.e., Mae Mai-Look Mai Muay Thai, Chern Muay, Kon Muay Kae ) and their combative applications with a special attention on their use in self-defence.
Open courses for instructors are frequently staged both locally and internationally and Khan grading sessions for students and instructors are held on a regular basis. IMBA Muay Boran is a complete fighting art that tends to combine the ring fighting science of Muay Thai with the martial applications of ancient Siamese unarmed combat techniques. In encouraging the two different aspects of the art to coexist, IMBA Muay Boran successfully bridges the gap between modern combat sports and traditional martial arts. Thanks to the effort of all IMBA members worldwide, traditional Muay has finally become a true world heritage, as advocated by the Thai masters of old time.
Combat Muay Boran (the most combative interpretation of the original unarmed Thai martial arts’ fighting skills), IMBA Lert Rit (a Siamese military Close Combat style adapted to civilian use) and IMBA Muay Pram (the present-day version of classical Thai Grappling) represent the three technical pillars of IMBA Muay Boran, the modern and scientific version of original Muay Thai Boran, developed since 2005.

World Wide IMBA Branches