We Never Saw This on Oz

This is one of those stories that gets stranger the farther into you read. The main event, so to speak, is odd but not particularly strange:

A female Thai prisoner has boosted her chances of freedom by winning the world light flyweight boxing title.

Samson Sor Siriporn, a convicted drug dealer, beat Japan's Ayaka Miyano in a bout staged at the mixed Klong Prem jail, known as the 'Bangkok Hilton.'

OK, so I lied - that is particularly strange, in and of itself, tailor-made for Hollywood. Sort of a cross between Rocky, a chicks in prison exploitation flick, and Victory. But what makes the whole thing seem all the more surreal are the details of the match that make it sound like something right out of HBO's infamous prison drama:

The match took place in a makeshift ring in the grounds of the Klong Prem prison, in front of a crowd of about 700 people, including a few prison inmates.

Transvestites released from their cells for the event paraded in high heels around the ring with placards.

Apparently, Siriporn has shown prison officials that she has "talent" and is a "changed woman," thus justifying the commencement of parole proceedings.