Hamilton-born artist-turned-fighter to represent Canada at Muay Thai world championship

Samantha Beattie · CBC News

· Posted: May 21, 2025 4:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 9 minutes ago

If, arsenic a kid, Fehn Foss knew she'd 1 time beryllium warring successful a world Muay Thai championship, she says she wouldn't person believed it.

"I'm amazed each time the turns my beingness has taken," said the 31-year-old ocular creator and Muay Thai fighter, originally from Hamilton. 

Foss describes herself arsenic "nerdy" increasing up and didn't play immoderate sports. But erstwhile she was successful her precocious teens, she discovered kickboxing, which drew her to Muay Thai arsenic a young adult. 

After 8 years of aggravated training, Foss is headed to Turkey this week to correspond Canada at the 2025 Senior World Championship tally by the International Federation of Muaythai Associations. She'll vie successful the 67 kilogram value class. 

"I'm truly arrogant to beryllium going and it feels precise 'once successful a lifetime,'" she said. 

The combat athletics from Thailand is antithetic from kickboxing successful that it allows fighters to onslaught opponents with immoderate of their "eight limbs": fists, elbows, knees and shins. They tin also throw and clinch opponents. 

Watch | The taste past and 'calmness' behind Muay Thai:

As Foss got superior astir Muay Thai, she was besides completing an undergraduate grade successful photography and masters successful ocular arts. By April 2022, she was grooming astatine Lotus Fitness successful Toronto and had her archetypal contention astatine Lithuanian House connected Bloor Street W. 

"I was beyond tense astir having an anxiousness onslaught portion successful the ring," said Foss. 

But arsenic soon arsenic she was determination she recovered a "deep focus." She won. 

"It was 1 of the coolest experiences to spell from specified utmost nervousness and, rather frankly, fearfulness to being relieved, elevated and arrogant of each the enactment I enactment in," she said.

"Then I was hooked and I knew I wanted to support progressing competitively." 

Training hours a day

Last summer, Foss qualified for Team Canada and prepared for the satellite championships, including training in Thailand for 3 months, wherever Muay Thai is the nationalist sport. 

Back home, grooming is aggravated — astir 18 hours a week successful season, Foss said. She also coaches Muay Thai, works arsenic an creator and is simply a teaching adjunct astatine York University.

Foss's manager astatine Lotus Fitness, Charles Chen, described her arsenic determined, hardworking and driven. 

"Fehn has been grooming her butt off," said Chen, 35, who has besides competed connected the satellite Muay Thai stage. "She has truthful overmuch going connected and she's inactive capable to beryllium truthful accordant successful the gym and propulsion ace hard." 

She'll beryllium up against athletes from countries similar Australia, the United Kingdom, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates and Russia, helium said. Thai athletes, who are usually "the toughest contention retired there," typically vie successful little value classes.

What drew Chen to Muay Thai was, at first, fittingness and he "really liked hitting things." He past became absorbed successful knowing the culture, method and "fine details" of the sport, which appears astir effortless. 

He's now seeing these components of Muay Thai resonate with young athletes arsenic it becomes much popular, helium said. 

Foss encourages radical of each ages to springiness combat sports a try. 

"I deliberation we presume the diversion imaginable is lone for young people, but I deliberation it's chill to propulsion yourself and find those limits of wherever you tin go," she said.

As an amateur athlete, Foss doesn't get paid to fight, and fundraises to screen question and cogwheel expenses, but said it's each worthy it. 

"I cognize myself better, I cognize my assemblage better, I'm arrogant of what I tin do," she said. "I consciousness truly contiguous physically and that's an unthinkable feeling to have."