From the ITBA Facebook Page:
ITBA – International Thaing Bando Association born with the intention to join together all different martial arts & fight sports styles from Myanmar under the same flag with the same values. WISDOM & BROTHERHOOD
In 1997, American Master Teacher Jon Collins and Spanish Master Teacher Jesus Vasquez Rivera managed to get permission to visit Myanmar and meet with the masters of various disciplines and systems there.
That series of meetings inspired the creation of the ITBA. On March 9, 2009, Jesus, along with Master Jean-Roger Calliere, Master Pierino Calascibetta and Master Jean Pierre Sappei of France met and created the ITBA, naming the head instructor for the system as U Pima Sayagyi Richard Morris of England.
In 2016, Sayagyi Dan Carroll travelled with Master Collins to France to celebrate the 30th anniversary of Hanthawaddy (American) Bando being introduced to France by Master Collins in 1986. This led to Sayagyi Carroll joining the ITBA members on a trip to Myanmar in 2019 to train with masters from several Traditional systems contained in the Myanmar Thaing Federation.
Sayagyi Dan became an unofficial “Ambassador” for the Americas as he brought back those trainings and switched his school over to a curriculum more aligned with the goals and teachings of the ITBA. There are ongoing discussions to make a more permanent relationship between Sayagyi Dan and the ITBA, and this page will be updated as those changes occur.