LGBTQ kickboxing fighter Pikanet “Jimmy” Sukyik thrust himself into the SEA Games spotlight once again following his gritty triumph in the men’s point fighting 63kg class, in which his fighting spirit came to the fore.
At the previous Games in Cambodia two years ago, Pikanet became an internet sensation overnight despite ending his campaign with only a bronze medal. A video clip of him performing a curtsy to greet his win after a fight went viral, drawing more than 2.3 million views.
Competing on home soil this time, the Nakhon Si Thammarat native portrayed himself as a genuine fighter, gritting his teeth to battle through pain in the final against Indonesia’s Sitepu Ariyanta to eventually clinch his first SEA Games gold medal on his third appearance at the region’s biennial sporting event.
Nevertheless, the Thai exponent had to go through anything but a rosy path to his achievement.
Disaster struck in the third and final round as Pikanet sustained an injury to his left shoulder. After receiving lengthy treatment, the Thai fighter showed he was not in the mood to let the injury derail his bid for the title, valiantly fighting on to secure a stunning 14–7 victory.
An emotional Pikanet struggled to hold back tears after taking the hard road to stand atop the regional stage.
“So delighted to win. The injury in the last round was something I never expected. It left me a bit unsettled, but I tried to maintain my concentration to stay in the fight,” he said, his eyes welling with tears.
“At that time, I thought that even if I had to fight with only one hand, I must not lose.”
“I was determined to win gold this time as I worked very hard in training. I wanted to do it for the association (the Kickboxing Association of Thailand), which has always supported me so well,” he added.
It would not have been the real “Jimmy” without controversy, however. He was cautioned by the World Kickboxing Federation for performing a “full turn” pose, which it deemed inappropriate.
“I received a caution from the federation yesterday for the full turn pose I made before the start of the bout. But our association didn’t say anything about it. They want me to be myself,” Jimmy said, before calling for open-mindedness.
“I would like everyone to be open-minded and leave aside gender identity. I think I proved today that fighting in a gender-classified event is not an issue. At the end of the day, we’re just individuals in the ring vying for victory.”
