Parinya Charoenphol ( th, ปริญญา เจริญผล; ), nicknamed Toom,; also known by the stage name Parinya Kiatbusaba; and the

colloquial name Colloquialism (), also called colloquial language, everyday language or general parlance, is the linguistic style used for casual (informal) communication. It is the most common functional style of speech, the idiom normally employed in conversa ...

Nong Toom or Nong Tum,; ; meaning 'Lil Sis Toom' is a Thai boxer, former muay Thai (Thai boxing) champion,

model A model is an informative representation of an object, person or system. The term originally denoted the plans of a building in late 16th-century English, and derived via French and Italian ultimately from Latin ''modulus'', a measure. Models c ...

and

actress An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek term is (), li ...

. She is a ''

kathoey ''Kathoey'' or ''katoey'' ( th, กะเทย; ) is an identity used by some people in Thailand, whose identities in English may be best described as transgender women in some cases, or effeminate gay men in other cases. Transgender wo ...

'', a Thai word referring to what is often considered a distinct gender in Thailand and elsewhere generally considered to be gender-nonconforming men or transgender women. At the age of 18, she underwent

sex reassignment surgery Gender-affirming surgery (GAS) is a surgical procedure, or series of procedures, that alters a transgender or transsexual person's physical appearance and sexual characteristics to resemble those associated with their identified gender, and a ...

Career and current projects

Her public life began in February 1998, with a victory in

Bangkok Bangkok, officially known in Thai as Krung Thep Maha Nakhon and colloquially as Krung Thep, is the capital and most populous city of Thailand. The city occupies in the Chao Phraya River delta in central Thailand and has an estimated populati ...

's Lumpini Boxing Stadium, the centre of the Muay Thai world. The Thai media were intrigued by the novelty and incongruity of a makeup-wearing 16-year-old ''

'' defeating and then kissing a larger, more muscular opponent. Although the Thai government had previously blocked ''kathoeys'' from participating in the national

volleyball Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules. It has been a part of the official program of the Sum ...

team for fear of negative reaction from the rest of the world, the Muay Thai establishment embraced Nong Toom, and tourism officials promoted her as "indicative of the wonders to be found" in Thailand. Muay Thai had been in a several-year slump at the time, and Nong Toom had revitalised both media and public interest in the sport, as shown by increased ticket sales and stadium revenue. She was profiled in several magazines, and appeared in many Thai

music video A music video is a video of variable duration, that integrates a music song or a music album with imagery that is produced for promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a music marketing device ...

s. Subsequently, her public profile began to fade, but her bouts with a foreigner, as well as her trip to Japan to fight a Japanese challenger, kept her in the news. By the autumn of 1998, there was little coverage of Nong Toom to be found in either the mainstream or boxing media. In 1999, Nong Toom caused considerable publicity by announcing her retirement from kick boxing, her intention to become a singer, and her plan to undergo

. She was initially turned down by some of the Bangkok surgeons she turned to, but was able to undergo the sex reassignment surgery in 1999 at

Yanhee International Hospital Yanhee International Hospital ( th, โรงพยาบาลยันฮี oːŋpʰájaːbaːn jənhiː YAHN-hee) is a multi-service general hospital in Bangkok, Thailand, that specializes in a range of medical and cosmetic services. Yanhee c ...

. On 26 February 2006, Nong Tum made her comeback as boxer. She fought an exhibition match for Fairtex Gym's new Pattaya branch (re-dubbed Nong Toom Fairtex Gym) by fighting a 140-pound contest against Japan's Kenshiro Lookchaomaekhemthong. Nong Toom won by unanimous decision after the three-round fight, leaving her rival with a cut near his eye from an elbow in the last round. Nong Toom was planning another exhibition bout for sometime in 2006 with a female boxer

Lucia Rijker Lucia Frederica Rijker (; born December 6, 1967) is a Dutch professional boxer, kickboxer, and actress. Rijker was sometimes dubbed by the press "The Most Dangerous Woman in the World". Early career Rijker speaks four languages and is a Bu ...

, who portrayed the lethal "Blue Bear" in the film '' Million Dollar Baby''. In October 2007 Nong Toom had her first fight as a woman versus

Jorina Baars Jorina Baars (born ) is a Dutch female kickboxing, K1 Muay Thai fighter, based in Den Helder, Netherlands. She has competed professionally since 2004 and is the current ISKA Welterweight World Muay Thai champion and the Enfusion Women's Featherwe ...

in Arnhem, the Netherlands. On 31 May 2008 Nong Toom had a fight against Pernilla Johansson at Rumble of the Kings in Stockholm, Sweden, and won by decision. In 2010, Nong Toom opened a boxing camp, Parinya Muay Thai, in Pranburi, Thailand, which she owned and operated with American actor-writer Steven Khan. As of 2011, she was teaching Muay Thai and aerobics to children at the Baan Poo Yai School.

Movie and other media appearances

Her story is related in the 2003 film ''

Beautiful Boxer ''Beautiful Boxer'' ( th, บิวตี้ฟูล บ๊อกเซอร์) is a 2003 Thai biographical sports film produced, directed and co-written by Ekachai Uekrongtham. It tells the life story of Parinya Charoenphol, a famous kathoey, ...

'' in which she was portrayed by male kickboxer Asanee Suwan. The film won several national and international awards, yet opened to limited success in Thailand. The film's director,

Ekachai Uekrongtham Ekachai Uekrongtham ( th, เอกชัย เอื้อครองธรรม; ; zh, 吕翼谋) is a Thai theatre and film director. Based in Singapore, Ekachai is the founding artistic director of ACTION Theatre, a Singapore professional ...

, also wrote the solo performance ''Boxing Cabaret'' for Nong Toom which she performed in the summer of 2005 at the

Singapore Arts Festival Singapore International Festival of Arts (SIFA) is an annual arts festival held in Singapore. It is organised bArts House Limitedfor the National Arts Council. The festival is usually held in mid-year for a stretch of one month and incorporates t ...

and later in Bangkok. Nong Toom's life as a kathoey is also part of the book ''Ladyboys: The Secret World of Thailand's Third Gender'' by Maverick House Publishers. Her story was also included in Julina Khusaini's National Geographic documentary ''Hidden Genders'' (2003). She had a prominent role in the 2006

superhero film A superhero film (or superhero movie) is a film that focuses on the actions of superheroes. Superheroes are individuals who possess superhuman abilities and are dedicated to protecting the public. These films typically feature action, advent ...

action film Action film is a film genre in which the protagonist is thrust into a series of events that typically involve violence and physical feats. The genre tends to feature a mostly resourceful hero struggling against incredible odds, which include l ...

Mercury Man ''Mercury Man'' ( Thai: มนุษย์เหล็กไหล or ) is a 2006 Thai superhero martial arts action film. It is directed by Bhandit Thongdee with martial arts choreography by Panna Rittikrai of ''Ong-Bak'', ''Tom-Yum-Goong'' and ' ...

'', playing the title character's transgender sibling and demonstrating her kickboxing prowess on the villains. In 2006, she appeared as a guest star on SBS television series '' World Record Pizza'' and '' Rallarsving'' in Sweden.

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