Tway Ma Shaung (Burmese: တွေ့မရှောင်; MLCTS: twei ma.shaun) (born December 9, 1982) is a retired Burmeselethwei fighter considered by many to be the best of his generation and a legend in the sport,[3][4][5] his fighting style characterised by his resilience and virtuosity.[6] He was revered for taking on larger and heavier opponents[1] and praised for his commitment to working the body instead of the head.[7]
Biography
Tway Ma Shaung was born in Mon State, but his family moved to Tanintharyi Region when he was two years old. He is the son of U Mya Thaung and Daw Nyo Nyo Khin and has one older brother and two younger sisters.[1] His first fight was in 1996 while in 8th standard and his second fight was during a school holiday in Myeik Township at an event hosted by his future trainer U Myint Wai. He left school after 9th standard.[8]
Lethwei career
The real start of Tway Ma Shaung's career was during the 1999/2000 season in Mon State where he was taught by local legend U Dee, the grandfather of Shwe Yar Mann. During his stay there he won six fights and drew in the other four.[9] After an invitation by coach U Myint Wai to partake in the State and Division tournament in 2002 and subsequently winning the gold medal in his weightclass, Myint Wai gave him the nickname Tway Ma Shaung (loosely translating to "not avoiding anyone in sight").
Tway Ma Shaung's only loss on TKO happened in early 2005 when he faced Kyal Lin Aung. In round 5 Kyal Lin Aung scored a knockdown and although Tway Ma Shaung got up in time, he was too tired to continue and decided to turn his back and hand over the victory.[10] In all their meetings Tway never got to avenge the loss since they were all draws.
Another well-known career spanning rivalry is the one with Win Tun, a fighter as skilled as Tway himself relying more on offense from the outside.[3] By the time they met, Win Tun had already achieved to become a triple Golden Belt Champion and single Challenge Fight belt holder. Tway was able to best him in most of their meetings but both the beauty and level of violence these two brought to the ring was the primary selling point for most visitors, regardless of outcome.
In a rare instance of Burmese boxers going oversees, Tway got to fight in Austria in 2008. For the occasion he camped at his opponents residence.[1] The fight was unfortunately overshadowed by the horrific events that unfolded back in his home country as cyclone Nargis had made landfall the day before the fight, claiming over 138.000 fatalities.
Closing out his career he attempted to attain the highest possible achievement in lethwei by fighting the national champion Saw Nga Man, a good 15kg heavier, who was the title-holder since 2009. Despite high expectations by the fans the fight ended up as a draw. Tway had to take a defensive stance against the powerful champion and was not able to inflict enough damage to take home the win.[11]
Retirement
In 2010, a culmination of events nearly led him to retire when his sister married, his house was burglarized and his father passed away.[8]
In 2014, when Tway Ma Shaung retired many theories floated around as to what the real reason was for his withdrawal from competition. Injuries, dissatisfaction and a big falling out with his long-time trainer Kyaw Soe have all been named. He even turned down a fight with newcomer Tun Tun Min for a record purse at the time.[1] In an interview a year after his retirement he said he had chosen family life at the request of his wife, because he always kept that itch to get back into the ring,[2] persistent rumors often appear of Tway Ma Shaung returning.[3] In 2018, The Daily Eleven falsely reported his return to the ring, as did various outlets after he appeared on a press conference prior to WLC 6: Heartless Tigers.[12]
Personal life
Tway Ma Shaung met his wife back in Dawei where she taught the child of the home-owner he was staying at. They got married in 2011 and have two children, Sit Naing Thu and Sit Yan Naing.[2] His favorite fighter is Wan Chai, closely followed by his former opponent Win Tun.[8]
