Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, September 10, 2024: The Asian Kickboxing Confederation celebrated Asian Kickboxing Day on Monday, September 9.
Kickboxing was first recognised by the Olympic Council of Asia during the 24th General Assembly in Guangzhou, China on September 9, 2005, and the Asian Kickboxing Confederation is the governing body of the sport in the continent.
Kickboxing has appeared in the Asian Indoor Games in 2007 and the Martial Arts Games in 2009, and also in the Southeast Asian Games in 2019, among other competitions.
In a congratulatory message, the President of the Asian Kickboxing Confederation Nasser Nassiri said: “The recognition of kickboxing by the OCA on September 9, 2005 is a milestone in the development of the sport not only in Asia but internationally. Such an achievement is recognised by the sporting community worldwide, bringing significant credibility to national kickboxing federations in Asia and other continents.”
Nassiri added: “It is obvious that kickboxing would be completely different without OCA recognition, and would surely not have been able to occupy the same place among the official sports that it currently occupies.”
September 9 was designated as Asian Kickboxing Day by the decision of the Board of Directors of the Confederation in 2019, and is celebrated by Asian members with different programmes.