Growing up in unforgiving South Boston, Eric Armington knew something about being an underdog in life. Fortunately, he never let that status define him and never let it get in the way of what he wanted to get out of life, a life that was tragically cut short last Saturday in a motorcycle accident in Medford, Massachusetts.
But during his 34 years, despite all his accomplishments in the equally unforgiving art of Muay Thai, where he achieved the rank of Kru (teacher) at the world-renowned Sityodtong camp in Somerville, he never forgot where he came from and never forgot what it was like to be the underdog – something reflected in his actions when making his regular trips to Thailand.
“He was one of those kids who didn’t have everything growing up, but later on in life he always remembered that, and when we went to Thailand there was this one kid he always sponsored,” remembered UFC lightweight contender Kenny Florian. “He never picked a successful kid who was there. He’d pick the kid who probably didn’t have the most talent and who wasn’t going to make it in the Muay Thai world, because who knows what was going to happen with a kid like that. He’d always bring clothes for the whole camp, he’d bring pads, give them money – anything he could – and it meant a lot to him to help out these kids who really had nothing.”
In Thailand, options are few and far between for young kids coming from poverty-stricken homes. In a lot of cases, it’s either make it in the ultra-competitive world of Muay Thai or become a cab driver. And even those who make it to one of the many camps in the country are not guaranteed anything, with the lesser fighters being tossed to the side. These were the fighters Armington identified with.
“He would always take a liking to the young fighters of the camp that didn’t have means, that didn’t have much to gain from anything, the guys in the roughest part of the camp without a bed, without a mosquito net,” said Mark DellaGrotte, owner and operator of Sityodtong USA and one of the premier Muay Thai coaches in the world. “He always had a compassionate side and a soft side for the people that were misfortunate, especially when he met the people in Thailand.”
It was Armington’s way of giving back, not only to those less fortunate than he was, but to the art which changed his life forever. DellaGrotte, who worked with him for ten years, remembers his first impression of Armington when he stepped through the doors of Sityodtong for the first time after stays in other Muay Thai camps.
“He was kind of a wild child, a good genuine kid, but definitely someone who had a fire about him,” said DellaGrotte. “He always had a presence and I hit it off with him right away when I met him ten years ago. He became one of my best friends immediately.”
That was the impression most had of Armington, whose tragic death set off a torrent of message board postings, blogs, and myspace bulletins that universally praised him as a good man taken much too soon.
“Eric was an awesome person – very, very giving, very kind,” said UFC middleweight standout Jorge Rivera, a member of the Sityodtong team. “He was all about the gym and the guys in the gym. He was very loving, and me personally, I loved Eric. He was an awesome person to be around and I’ll miss him.”
Florian agrees. “He was the kind of guy who would do anything for you. He just wanted to help out. The way he grew up, I think he appreciated everything that he had later on in life and any opportunities to give back, any opportunities to help someone, especially the younger kids, he did it, and he had a genuine passion for what he did and he lived it every single day.”
For DellaGrotte, it goes even deeper than that, because not only was Armington a friend, but he was a key element in the success of the Sityodtong gym and its fighters.
“He was basically my right hand man,” he said. “He handled private lessons, he handled classes, he was there when I was gone, and he studied under me extensively for ten years. I think what made him special in the academy was just his love for what he did, his love for Muay Thai. He was such an exuberant teacher, and he would care about everybody from top level UFC fighters all the way down to guys doing a trial lesson for the first time. He would always be there for them, and that’s what made Eric who he was – his love for Muay Thai, his love for who he was, and his passion for life and to live.”
His love for Muay Thai filled every aspect of his life, never more so than when he traveled to the birthplace of the art with DellaGrotte.
“When he went to Thailand with me for the first time it truly moved his life and changed it for the better,” said DellaGrotte, who made him a regular travel partner on those trips, eventually watching as Armington was accepted by the Thai people as one worthy enough to practice and teach their sport.
“He was well-known and respected by the Thais,” continues DellaGrotte. “He would actually hold pads for the Thai guys, which is actually very rare. Not many Americans hold pads in Thailand, and he was someone who studied under me so extensively that he was on that level. He reached a mastery level before he passed.”
It was in Thailand that Armington also got a unique taste of competition at its rawest level.
“He fought in this little stadium in his first trip over there,” recalled DellaGrotte. “He was actually beating the crap out of the kid and we had to stop the fight because Eric had kicked the kid so hard a few times that his shin split open. It was pretty bad, so we stopped the fight, but he was fighting like a maniac and that was just how he was. He ended up getting put in the back of a truck and taken to a hospital where he got a bunch of stitches for like nine bucks. (Laughs) It was something that we always joked about and something I’ll always remember.”
Armington passed his trial by fire that night, and Thailand became almost like a second home when he would make his trips there once or twice a year, and according to Florian, he became quite the expert on the lay of the land.
“That was one of the first times I got on a moped,” laughed Florian, recalling his trip to Thailand with Armington in the spring of 2005. “There it is dangerous. There are no rules, and I remember him saying ‘Kenny, just chill back with me, we’ll go slow,’ (Laughs) and that was the way he was. He showed me around and we hung out a lot in Thailand. He tried to speed along my learning process and my familiarity with the city while I was there. We had a great time and that’s where I really got close to Eric and saw the type of person he was.”
Once back home, Armington would hold the fort in Somerville when DellaGrotte was forced to go on the road to corner the gym’s fighters in high-profile events.
“I needed him so much that he really didn’t have time to prepare for his own fights,” said DellaGrotte. “He was in such demand in my gym from people who wanted to learn under him, and every time you saw me in the UFC, every time I was out there doing my thing and getting these guys the wins, he was there for us. He was the one who was back home running the gym. He was the only one qualified to tape hands and corner fighters. He was one of my highest ranked guys and he’ll be sorely missed at the academy. It’s a major loss, not only to Sityodtong, but anybody that ever met him.”
And he made a definite impact on fighters like Rivera and Florian, even if he wasn’t always in the corner on fight night.
“He was an excellent Muay Thai coach,” said Rivera. “It wasn’t just what he taught; it was all the little intangible things like his mental approach and his philosophy. He was so strong in the mind and he tried to interject what he felt to his students and the people around him. He had a great energy.”
“Every possible opponent, he was scouting them and telling me this is what I should be doing, and he was one of my biggest supporters, no doubt about it,” Florian concurs. “He’s definitely gonna give every one at the camp extra motivation when we go into our fights. He lived his life the way he wanted to live it, and he was almost stubborn in that way, but he definitely loved what he was doing every single day.”
On Friday, Eric Armington – who is survived by his girlfriend of five years, Gina, and his family – will be laid to rest at Canton Cemetery. Later that afternoon, there will be a gathering at Sityodtong in his honor. And while there are definitely crushing feelings of sadness and loss among those who know him, you get the feeling that Friday and every day after that will be a time for celebrating his 34 years of life and the impact he made on so many lives.
DellaGrotte pauses when asked about his friend.
“Eric would often say that he thought he was going to die young; it’s almost like he knew,” he said. “But very, very few people can touch people the way he did. He had the gift, and that’s what he’ll be remembered for.”
From Mark DellaGrotte… This Friday at 10am, there will be a Graveside Ceremony at Canton Cemetery, 1716 Washington St., Canton, MA.
At 1pm, there will be a gathering at Sityodtong in memory of Kru Eric Armington.
At the family’s request any donations or contributions made should be sent to:
Sityodtong 100 Broadway Somerville, MA 02145
Make payments payable to Sityodtong Inc. and reference Kru Eric Memorial Fund. All donations will be delivered to the camp in Thailand.
It was Eric's Dream to be able to give back to the people who gave to him. He had always spoken of helping to support the next generation of young fighters at Sityodtong Thailand who moved him so deeply. He had the great experience of witnessing their lifestyle first hand and would always speak of their difficult childhoods. A memorial at the camp in Thailand is scheduled to be built.
Sityodtong USA is also starting the Kru Eric Thailand Excursion Scholarship. This will provide a trip to Thailand once a year for Students of lesser means. For information please contact Tom Hafers at thafers@usmma.org or sityodtong@yahoo.com
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