Both of these men are very proud of their Asian heritage. Manny is not only a Boxer but also a politician in his home country. Benson’s number one influence in his life was his Korean mother. I’ve notice that in both sports their race is never truly brought up. It might be mentioned but it is never used as a positive or a negative. This doesn’t only extend to them though. Currently in the UFC there are fighters like Kim Dong-Hyun, Jung “Korean Zombie” Chan-Sung, and fighters like Yushin Okami. Like all other fighters their ethnicity is never brought up. What makes the athletes in these sports different than say basketball and how they treat their Asian-stars?
Monday, December 10, 2012
Asians in Combat Sports
We all know how Asian men are represented in mainstream American media. However, there is one area of American culture where Asian’s seem to be excepted for their talent more than anything else. That area is in combat sports such as Boxing and Mixed Martial Arts. Some of the most well know names in both sports are Asian men. In Boxing the most popular person in the sport is a Filipino by the name of Manny Pacquiao. The champion of the 155 pound division is a young half Korean and half Black guy by the name of Benson Henderson.
Both of these men are very proud of their Asian heritage. Manny is not only a Boxer but also a politician in his home country. Benson’s number one influence in his life was his Korean mother. I’ve notice that in both sports their race is never truly brought up. It might be mentioned but it is never used as a positive or a negative. This doesn’t only extend to them though. Currently in the UFC there are fighters like Kim Dong-Hyun, Jung “Korean Zombie” Chan-Sung, and fighters like Yushin Okami. Like all other fighters their ethnicity is never brought up. What makes the athletes in these sports different than say basketball and how they treat their Asian-stars?
My belief is that because combat sports are about the individual you can’t really say anything negative to the men that make it to the level they are at. What matters is what happens during the fight. The stereotypes can’t be applied to them. Yes, they are martial artist but they none of them are the type of martial artist that the mainstream media portrays in any medium. There is something raw about these men. As a fan of both sports that is one thing I love about combat sports itself. It isn’t about skin color (even though boxing was once like that). It is about being the best. Maybe one day this attitude will extend to other areas of American media and sports but as of right now I feel this is a good place to start. Since combat sports is about the talent and ability not the color of ones skin. Especially with Fighters that are extremely talented like the “Korean Zombie” and Ben “Smooth” Henderson.
Both of these men are very proud of their Asian heritage. Manny is not only a Boxer but also a politician in his home country. Benson’s number one influence in his life was his Korean mother. I’ve notice that in both sports their race is never truly brought up. It might be mentioned but it is never used as a positive or a negative. This doesn’t only extend to them though. Currently in the UFC there are fighters like Kim Dong-Hyun, Jung “Korean Zombie” Chan-Sung, and fighters like Yushin Okami. Like all other fighters their ethnicity is never brought up. What makes the athletes in these sports different than say basketball and how they treat their Asian-stars?
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I find MMA so interesting, especially since my boyfriend, who is half japanese fights in MMA. I feel Asian men are just as capable in doing professional sports, but this negative stereotype of being wimpy or uncoordinated is really hindering. Even though MMA can be compared to "kung fu" i feel it is more of a positive image. Also i want to give props to all the Asian professional baseball and football players like Ichiro Suzuki and Troy Polamalu.
ReplyDeleteInteresting read. I think you are correct that combat sports definitely allow the athletes to be judged for their performance with less bias. Interesting to note that each of these sports is taking individuals to make it more equalized, they are usually matched on weight. When I think of the criticism that Asians and Asian Americans have faced I always think of team based sports. The images of Jeremy Lin and Ben from Better Luck Tomorrow immediately Spring to mind but it is hard to draw an immediate correlation to team sports or basketball specifically and the prominence of the visible racism. One sport that debunks the team theory is soccer/football. I think what could be the deciding factor is the size of the worldly audience. I know soccer has a global audience as does boxing (I’m less confident on the viewer popularity of MMA). Basketball has a primarily U.S. viewership if I’m not too mistaken. The amount of racism and bias could come from the values that the viewers hold.
ReplyDeleteIn addition, I believe that the one vs. one nature of these combat sports really gives viewers the scenario to judge the individual with no opportunity given to those who might claim other external forces such as "teammates" helped them claim victory.
Interesting read. I think you are correct that combat sports definitely allow the athletes to be judged for their performance with less bias. Interesting to note that each of these sports is taking individuals to make it more equalized, they are usually matched on weight. When I think of the criticism that Asians and Asian Americans have faced I always think of team based sports. The images of Jeremy Lin and Ben from Better Luck Tomorrow immediately Spring to mind but it is hard to draw an immediate correlation to team sports or basketball specifically and the prominence of the visible racism. One sport that debunks the team theory is soccer/football. I think what could be the deciding factor is the size of the worldly audience. I know soccer has a global audience as does boxing (I’m less confident on the viewer popularity of MMA). Basketball has a primarily U.S. viewership if I’m not too mistaken. The amount of racism and bias could come from the values that the viewers hold.
ReplyDeleteIn addition, I believe that the one vs. one nature of these combat sports really gives viewers the scenario to judge the individual with no opportunity given to those who might claim other external forces such as "teammates" helped them claim victory.