Thai mixed martial arts champion Amp Kanjutha has broken her silence following a distressing incident at the 3rd Asian MMA Championships, where her scheduled Chinese opponent refused to compete against her based on claims about her gender identity.
The situation unfolded at yesterday’s championship event, with the Chinese competitor withdrawing from their bout while incorrectly asserting that Kanjutha was “not a woman.” The accusation left the accomplished Thai athlete visibly shaken by what she describes as a deeply hurtful experience.
In an emotional statement shared with her followers, Kanjutha acknowledged the outpouring of support she has received since the incident. “Thank you so much. I’ve read all your messages. Thank you from the bottom of my heart. I’ve been hurting about this…” she wrote, accompanying her words with a broken heart emoji.
The 2025 SEA Games gold medalist has built an impressive competitive resume throughout her career. Her accomplishments include capturing gold at the GAMMA World MMA Championship in Brazil in 2025, earning top honors at The World Games in the United States in 2022, and claiming the Jujitsu World Championship title in the United Arab Emirates in 2020.
Most recently, Kanjutha added another gold medal to her collection at the 33rd SEA Games 2025 in Thailand, further cementing her status as one of Southeast Asia’s premier competitors in her discipline.
Despite the challenging circumstances at the Asian Championships, Kanjutha has received an overwhelming response from supporters across social media. In a recent post celebrating her latest achievement, she reflected on her journey with gratitude: “Thank you for not stopping improving. Thank you for not being discouraged. Thank you for continuing. Thank you for daring to accept yourself. And thank you for having fun and happy with it. Thank you, Amp.”
That beings said Kanjutha’s appearance is not easily overlooked. It’s unclear what kind of regulations SEA Games utilizes when it comes to chromosome testing.
More broadly, the episode lands amid a renewed wave of scrutiny around gender eligibility and testing in combat sports, sparked recently by boxing controversies involving Imane Khelif and other athletes whose biology has been publicly debated without clear, transparent standards.
Across federations, inconsistent policies on chromosome testing, DSD conditions and medical privacy have created an environment where suspicion often replaces due process, leaving athletes exposed to public judgment before regulators provide clarity. Kanjutha’s case reflects how these unresolved frameworks can spill into competition itself, turning governance failures into personal humiliation for competitors who have already passed whatever eligibility checks their sport requires, while raising uncomfortable questions about who bears responsibility when accusations are made without evidence on the international stage.
