Following the dream of a wrestler who went all the way to Japan, Fang
Friday, July 30, 2021 – 06:32
Welcome to the Olympic season. Let's try a little bit of MSM, which is an athlete. And it's not a general sport, but wrestling. That's exciting, right? Let's see what this wrestler's thoughts and dreams are. Let's start!
testBKK: Let me introduce myself a little bit. What's your name? What are you doing now?
My name is Apichart Thanabortrakul, nickname Fang. I'm currently a professional wrestler for TOP DOJO, a wrestling camp in Thailand that is a group of Thai wrestlers who have wrestled both domestically and internationally. Before, I was with another camp. I just recently moved to the TOP DOJO family.
My free time activities focus on exercising and training my body. When I relax, I play games, watch movies, or meet up with friends like everyone else.
testBKK: What are you impressed with or proud of in your career?
As I said, being a professional wrestler, the highest point for us is to let people know about who we are and what we try to do. It is to bring happiness and smiles to those who love wrestling and follow our work in the camp and let others know more about us.
The first pride in my career is that I came to train and develop myself until I successfully became a professional wrestler. I also won the championship at my old camp and was the first Thai group to wrestle in a Japanese ring at Korakuen Hall, which is the largest arena in Japan. An opportunity like this is very rare to get the chance to go up to a big ring. So I feel proud of what I received after trying and devoting myself to it during that time.
testBKK: Compare the past and present with what you dreamed of as a child. Do they match?
In the past, when I was 13 years old, I was a child who liked watching wrestling and had a dream like any other child who loves and admires something and wants to be that thing. If it were me, I would want to be a wrestler like The Rock or Stone Cold on TV. At that time, I thought it was a dream that was hard to come true. Until 15 years later, my dream started to come true when a teacher from Japan at a Japanese camp wanted to open a camp in Thailand and let Thai people know more about professional wrestling. They tried to recruit people to train and select people to become wrestlers, and it made my childhood dream come true. I consider that I have achieved my childhood dream.
testBKK: If given the choice to live or work in a country, which country would you want to go to and pursue a career that you like (your favorite country) and why?
I want to live in Japan. What I really want to do is become a professional wrestler there, but another thing I want to try is to be a chef or open a restaurant there because I really like their dressing culture and how they express themselves. The food there is diverse and uniquely presented or created. I want to try Thai food, plus new creativity, so that Japanese people can get to know the tastes and appearances of food that are different from other countries.
testBKK: What do you expect from society about gender diversity equality?
I want society of all races and countries to be more open and accepting, that what we are is not a serious crime that should be punished or expelled, but it is a colorful world that we have in another way. No matter if it is a man, a woman, or any gender, we all have equal thoughts and feelings. No matter what job it is, it can happen in every profession. So I want society to feel more accepting and understanding. We are not causing any trouble or problems. They just want to live happily like normal people. If someone doesn't like what they are, I don't want them to look down on, curse, or hate them because if they have a choice, they want to be normal like you. That's why I want you to try to open your mind about alternative genders.
Interviewed by A Wattana
