Kota Kinabalu: The Sabah Muaythai Association held its 2026 Annual General Meeting at Sutera Harbour Resort, here, recently, with delegates agreeing on several key initiatives to strengthen the sport’s development across the State.
Chaired by the Association’s President Nazri Ab Razak, the meeting brought together district association presidents and secretaries from Penampang, Kota Kinabalu, Kota Marudu, Sandakan, Ranau and Kudat to chart a strategic path forward for Muaythai in Sabah.
Nazri pointed out the Association’s commitment to improving its administrative structure, grassroots athlete development, technical programmes and the organisation of more structured, high-impact competitions.
Among the headline decisions was agreement to expand the association’s competition calendar as a tiered platform for athlete development.
This includes the Sabah Muaythai Expo – The Young Guns, scheduled for April, which will focus on developing Under-17 athletes as the next generation of Sabah Muaythai talent.
A second major event, the Sabah Muaythai Expo – Ladies Fight, is planned for May with a comprehensive focus on women’s participation in the sport not only as competitors, but also in technical, coaching and event management roles, with the entire event to be run by women.
To further support athlete career pathways, the Association also plans to introduce a monthly professional debut competition platform, giving local athletes a more systematic and competitive avenue to launch their professional careers.
The Association will additionally continue staging the Sabah Muaythai Championship on a biannual basis as the State’s premier competition, serving as both a selection event and a performance benchmark for Sabah’s Muaythai squad at the national level.
On the technical side, the Association expressed its commitment to raising the competency of coaches, referees and technical officials through ongoing courses, workshops and certification programmes to ensure Sabah’s Muaythai standards remain consistently high.
The meeting ended in a constructive and collaborative atmosphere, reflecting the collective resolve of all parties to see Muaythai grow as one of Sabah’s most competitive combat sports and to produce more quality athletes capable of representing the State and nation in the years ahead.
