Niyom Thongchit
Niyom Thongchit (1909–March 19, 1986) was a Thai Muay Thai fighter, boxer, and one of Thailand’s most respected trainers. He was known as Kru Niyom or Ajaan Niyom.
Born in Bangkok, he studied at Suankularb Wittayalai School, where he befriended future leaders. He loved sports from a young age and competed in boxing and Muay Thai, earning early fame in school competitions and national events.
As a fighter, he battled in Muay Boran and defeated well-known opponents, including Young Hantalay in a first-round TKO and a prison guard named Kru Khan in Ayutthaya. He studied boxing in England on a scholarship and fought as an amateur about ten times.
After returning home, he worked as a physical education teacher at several schools, teaching boxing, judo and basketball, and he wrote a jujitsu textbook in 1933.
In 1954 he left teaching to co-found the Kingpetch Boxing Gym. There he trained many boxers, most famously Pone Kingpetch, who became the first Thai world boxing champion after beating Pascual Pérez for the flyweight title on April 16, 1960, at Lumpinee Stadium.
Thongchit also trained other boxers and helped Pone build leg strength with water-skiing in Hua Hin. He was widely respected and known as Kru Niyom or Ajaan Niyom; Pone and his wife called him Khun Phor (daddy).
After tensions over Pone’s alcohol problems, Thongchit hoped to start another gym but fell ill. He had several rib surgeries and died of pulmonary edema in Bangkok on March 19, 1986, at age 77.
This page was last edited on 2 February 2026, at 22:38 (CET).