Testimonials

My Muay Thai Journey

By Daniel Ivarsson

I remember seeing Master Sken in a magazine when I was young, I was fascinated by Martial Arts and thought Master Sken looked amazing.
It was to be years later that I would actually meet the man himself.
After training Muay Thai in my home country Sweden and in Spain Whilst I was working overseas, I decided to travel to Thailand it was a great experience and I trained with some excellent Thai boxers.

In Thailand I trained very hard in the heat lots of pad work training that I really enjoyed, but I still felt like I had much more to learn, I wanted to be more like the Thai people they moved so differently to all the European boxers. I wondered if this was possible for others to achieve.
I was unable to find a Muay Thai Club in my area to train so I then decided to contact Master Sken and went to Manchester for a private lesson. I arrived the evening before and went to meet Master Sken and watch the class, I was made very welcome and was amazed at the students. The way they moved across the floor the footwork speed and power in their techniques I couldn’t wait to get started.
The next day I was excited and nervous, Master Sken was everything I had hoped for and much more he assessed me and gave me many things to work on which really helped as I was training on my own. At first I felt very heavy and slow but every time I trained using exercises and principles Master Sken had taught me I could feel myself improving.
After many more private lessons with Master Sken I was beginning to look and feel more like the Thai Boxer I wanted to be. I was delighted when Master Sken Invited Me on the Instructors Training Course this has been my life long ambition and I was so honoured to be asked, Thai Boxing is my passion and I want to be able to teach and promote the Traditional Art of Muay Thai.
The course included everything you need to be a successful Instructor
The first week went through Health & safety of the gym, equipment, teaching beginners the importance of positive coaching how to teach in a constructive way with Masters Sken’s unique System.
The second week included self defence, advanced combinations, techniques & pad work, Traditional Muay Thai, Grading Syllabus, Business skills and much more.
The Course has taught me that Muay Thai is more than just Fighting Art It’s a way of life and has something for everyone. Passing the Course and being made a S.I.M.T.A Instructor was the proudest moment of my life. I am so grateful to Master Sken for giving me this opportunity and I will endeavour to uphold the True Traditional Art of Muay Thai as an Instructor and Life long student. I will continue to train with Master Sken on a regular basis to further my own progress and knowledge and to maintain the standards of Masters Sken’s unique system.

Daniel Ivarsson

Instructors Seminar with Master Sken

By Simon Love

On Monday 3rd April I started the second half of my instructors course, it was something I had been looking forward to since the completion of the first week.

Master Sken met us with his usual warm welcome. The course began at 10 am by going over the basic techniques and principles of instruction that we had covered in the first week, even at this early stage Master Sken’s attention to detail is second to none, and because of this he instils confidence in you and your own abilities to spot the smallest error in your own technique or that of others.

During the week the same attention to detail was given to Ram Muay, Ring Craft, Muay Boran and Pad Work. We also learnt about the structure of taking a class, how to develop them and control the environment so students get the best from each lesson. Also during the course we applied the technique and assessments to grading, again spotting errors and awarding marks consistently with Master Sken’s view of the technique.

In addition to the physical side of the course we spent each evening attending classes and taking notes and studying Muay Thai history and terminology. Master Sken also provided us with lessons in running clubs on a business level.

The course culminated in a 2 hour 30minute test of all Muay Thai technique, History, Rules and Terminology covered on the course. Finally at the end of the course Master Sken presented us with our instructor’s certificate, Monkon and Red instructor’s kruang – ruang.

I am lucky enough to have achieved a 3rd Dan in Karate and 1st Dan in Tae Kwon Do, but I am truly honoured to be accepted as one of Master Sken’s Instructors and hope to help promote the art of Muay Thai and the standards set by Master Sken.

Lastly I would like to thank Paul Kaporwicz for taking the time to teach my son Sam for 2 hours almost ever day of the course.

Many Thanks Simon Love