By JULIE CARLE
BG Independent News
What started with a handful of friends training in a carpeted basement has grown into a new martial arts business in Bowling Green.
Empire Muay Thai recently opened its doors after founder Casey Ogan and business partner Sam Kern teamed up to transform the former Cain’s Potato Chip factory into a home for Muay Thai, a mixed martial arts training and competition. The gym has only been open at 425 Napoleon Road, Unit 4 for a short time, but its story began years earlier — and in a much smaller setting.
After a Toledo gym closed, where Ogan had helped as an assistant coach, friends began asking if they could continue training together. A few people quickly became many.
“Then the next thing you know, there was like 20 people in my basement,” Ogan said.
The basement became known as “the dungeon,” a place where members trained hard despite limited space. As the program grew, so did the competition team, with fighters taking on competitors from much larger and better-funded facilities.
That underdog mentality helped inspire the name Empire.
The gym’s roots can also be traced to Ogan’s own journey. He originally went to college to play football but left the sport after injuries and concussions. A chance encounter while hitting a heavy bag at a fitness gym introduced him to combat sports. He eventually discovered Muay Thai and became hooked.
Muay Thai, the national sport of Thailand, combines punches and kicks with knees, elbows and clinch fighting. Ogan said he was drawn to both its deep traditions and its practical, competitive nature.
“It started as a very traditional old military style martial arts, similar to karate stuff. It has blossomed into a sport and now it’s starting to be westernized,” he explained. “It’s tradition, lineage and the deep roots that’s not just doing katas and dojo stuff. It just hit all of those kind of grooves that I liked about it. I fell in love and got obsessed with it,” he said.
After outgrowing the basement, an opportunity in Bowling Green brought the next step. Kern, a former student of Ogan and now his business partner, had a space in the area. Ogan saw potential in Bowling Green, citing its college-town atmosphere and what he saw as an opportunity for more martial arts training options.
“They don’t really have a lot of martial arts or anything like this around here,” he said. “It’s a college town, and it’s got a really good vibe.”
Getting the gym ready was a demanding process. Ogan, who also works full-time as an engineering manager, spent weeks working eight-hour shifts before heading to the gym, sometimes staying until 1 or 2 a.m.
The work has resulted in a gym designed to welcome everyone from complete beginners to experienced competitors.
Empire offers three levels of adult training: a beginner-friendly Foundations class, a pad work class focused on combinations and conditioning, and an advanced class that increases the pace and intensity. The gym also offers a children’s program.
Classes are available five days a week: Monday through Friday, the beginner/foundations class is from 5-6 p.m.; the pad work class is from 6-7 p.m.; and the advanced class is from 7 to 8 p.m. The kids’ program class is on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 4-5 p.m.
“We stay open until 8:30 p.m. if the competition team wants to spar and get more wicked,” he said.
Ogan said newcomers do not need to get in shape before walking through the door.
“We’ve had 50, 60-year-old people come for classes. We’ve had teenagers,” he said. “It’s been a mix of men and women.”
For those who want to take their training further, the gym also has a competition team. But Ogan said competing requires more than physical ability. Fighters are expected to train consistently, take care of themselves and represent the gym with character and respect.
“I try to build character as much as I build their fighting capabilities,” he said.
For Ogan, the new Bowling Green gym represents more than a business expansion. It is the latest chapter in a journey that began with friends gathering to train in a basement and grew through hard work, long nights and an underdog mentality.
From “the dungeon” to a dedicated training facility, Empire Muay Thai is now looking to build its next chapter in Bowling Green — one class, one fighter and one member at a time.
Find more information about Empire Muay Thai on the website, Facebook page and Instagram account.
