The 2009 IFMA European Championships exceeded all expectations. Thirty-five countries participated in this outstanding event which took place in the beautiful city of Liepaga, Latavia. Spectators were able to see Europe’s finest Muaythai athletes battling for medals over the seven day event.

Latvia may be one of the smaller European countries, but it showed that it is a leading sporting power house in Europe. The event was under the umbrella of the Latvian government and organized by the Latvian Muaythai Organization.

Europe has several countries which prove time and again that they are a force to be reckoned with; Russia, Ukraine, Belorussia, Turkey, England, Finland, Poland, Germany, France, Czech Republic and Italy  were challenged by Muaythai’s best from  Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, and Israel. Countries like Denmark, Romania, Hungary, Croatia, Lithuania, Bulgaria, and Spain showed that their fighters are in full preparations for the upcoming world championships in Bangkok.

The junior division was action-packed and came down to some very close decisions. The fights were tough but safety for all athletes is of utmost importance. There respect these youngsters have for one other  is truly remarkable and which is one of the key components of the sport of Muaythai.

The female divisions had the capacity crowd on their feet.  The female fighters have long since emerged from the shadow of the male divisions and are always a crowd pleaser. This year it was Belorussia, Finland, England, Turkey, Bulgaria, and Hungary that really stood out.

Congratulations are due to the Latvian Muaythai Organization and the President, Mr. Vasily Fleisher for hosting an outstanding championship. The next big event for our athletes will be the IFMA World Championships in Bangkok in honour of his Majesty the King of Thailand’s Birthday.

Source: http://www.ifmamuaythai.org/HTML/09_0710_EuroChmp.html