Kickboxers in India have gained immense popularity in the country. The game itself is now being played with utmost zeal and enthusiasm. Kickboxing is a sport which has already garnered a lot of enthusiasm among the people. It refers to a group of martial arts and stand-up combat sports based on kicking and punching, historically developed from karate, Muay Thai and western boxing. Kickboxing in India, like most other places in the world, is often practiced for self-defence, general fitness, or as a contact sport.
Since kickboxing is a broad term that can be used both in a wide and narrow sense. This can make understanding the history somewhat difficult. Some of the earliest forms of kickboxing included the various Indochinese martial arts especially Muay Boran, which developed into modern Muay Thai.
However in terms of modern competition, it was during the 1950s that a Japanese karateka named Tatsuo Yamada first established an outline of a new sport that combined karate and Muay Thai. There are basically two types of techniques in kickboxing - like defensive technique in kickboxing and attacking technique in kickboxing. In India, the Indian Kickboxing Association is the apex body that takes care of all the activities related to kickboxing in India.
Some of the popular names in the filed of kickboxing are Kultar Gill, Midhun Jith, Sushmita Rai, Ritika Singh, Kultar Gill, Singh Jaideep, Neeraj Mehta and Jaideeo Singh.
Kultar Gill
Kultar Gill is a popular name in the field of kickboxing. He is an Indo-Canadian kickboxer who was born in the year 1979 on 24th March. He had, throughout his career, won a lot of championships and competitions.
Jaideep Singh
Jaideep Singh is a young talent in the field of kickboxing in India. Born in the year 1987 on 21st August, Jaideep has already grabbed the headlines for his tremendous achievement in the field of kickboxing.
Sushmita Rai
Sushmita Rai is an Indian kickboxer who won a silver medal in the WAKO Asian Kickboxing Championship 2015 and bronze medal at the World Martial Arts Masterships 2016. Sushmita Rai won bronze medal at the World Martial Arts Masterships 2016, held at Cheongju, North Chungcheong Province of South Korea in which over 1,900 athletes and officials from 81 countries competed in 17 disciplines including Kickboxing, Taekwondo, Judo and Kendo.
Ritika Singh
Ritika Singh was born on 16th December in the year 1994. She is an Indian actress and mixed martial artist, who predominantly appears in Tamil films and also has appeared in Hindi and Telugu films. After competing for India at the 2009 Asian Indoor Games and then participating in the Super Fight League, she played a leading role in Sudha Kongara Prasad`s Tamil film Irudhi Suttru (also shot in Hindi as Saala Khadoos) alongside R. Madhavan. She won Special Mention at the 63rd National Film Awards for her performance in Irudhi Suttru.
Singh "Heart" Jaideep
Singh "Heart" Jaideep is an Indian-Japanese heavyweight kickboxer and mixed martial artist. He is the K-1 World Grand Prix 2009 in Seoul tournament champion.
Midhun Jith
Midhun Jith is a Marine Engineering Officer and Former 2-times World Kickboxing Federation Champion who competes in the light heavyweight division. He is the only Indian to hold the World Kick boxing Championship and International Karate Championship at the same time. He is first ever Guinness World Record holder to win a World Kickboxing Federation World Championship.
Neeraj Mehta
Neeraj Mehta was born on 19th October in the year 1972. He is a fitness instructor and nutritionist, having worked within the industry for more than three decades. His career in fitness began at 9 years of age, when he began training in the martial arts, subsequently winning his first national gold medal at 12. He eventually mastered fourteen different fitness disciplines, including Karate, Taekwondo, Kickboxing, Tai Chi, Iron Yoga, Pilates, High Intensity Workout and Cross-Training.
