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We all know of the major heads of the various Krav orgs (and their top students/instructor teams). I’m looking for people that are the unsung heroes.
Who is the best kept secret in Krav Maga when it comes to pure knowledge, ability and teaching ability?
Re: Krav Maga experts/instructors that AREN’T widely known
1. Raphy Elgrissy – he was the recipient of the second black belt ever given in Krav Maga. He now works with the Israeli Krav Magen Association K.A.M.I. Read his bio and check out the old photos. http://www.originalkravmaga.com/raphy%20elgrissy.html
2. Alan Feldman – 3rd degree black belt under Imi. One of the original three American instructors trained to introduce KM to the United States along with Darren Levine and Rick Blitsein. Lives in Philadelphia and is my instructor.A few of his black belts..some of whom have been training with him since the 80s teach at my school. Great KM black belts that most will never get a chance to train with. http://atlantickravmaga.com/instructors.htm
3. Rick Blitstein – see above
4. Reuvin Maimon – One of the top Israeli KM black belts. Left the KM world in the 90s but still talked about.
5. Avi Avisidon – Head of K.A.M.I just old school…been around since the 70s.
6. Avital Zeisler – teaches at the IKMA school in NYC. Great female KM fighter. Young in the system but better than some people who have been around for awhile.
7. Dana Ben Kaplan – from Krav Maga San Diego. Been around for a long time but doesnt get a lot of recognition. Old school IKMF.
8. Patrick Lockton – IKMF rep in NYC.
9. Rhon Mizrachi – even though kind of well known he doesnt get as much attention as he should. Been training in KM since his youth. Totally old school style. He also has a number of black belts under him who are really,really good.
10. Katrina Reynolds – black belt under Rhon who just kicks ass.
Those are just the few who stand out to me. All from different associations. I did not mention any KMW instructors as I am sure someone on this board would know them better.
Re: Krav Maga experts/instructors that AREN’T widely known
Wow Kevin
That’s exactly the purpose of this post!
Thanks for that… It is a great list!
Curious about Reuvin Maimon – Do you know why he left Krav Maga?
Have seen a video of Avital. Totally agree!
Re: Krav Maga experts/instructors that AREN’T widely known
I dont know the exact reason….but when the original KM association fell apart in the early 90s some people started their own organizations and others just kind of “retired”. Some of the top names in KM just kind of stopped being active around that time. People like Reuvin,Shayke Barak and David Ben Asher.
I think I also remember someone telling me that Reuvin got into religion seriously. Reuvin is the instructor with the beard teaching in the first section of this video and later in the middle. Raphy is the instructor in the second training section with the receding hairline. This was filmed in the very early 90s.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2mtiiokdrsI&feature=my_favorites&list=FLVVE8Um0FcrslJF-_JmfpJQRe: Krav Maga experts/instructors that AREN’T widely known
A few other names:
1. Nir Maman – many of you have heard about him but if you ever get the opportunity to train with him…take it!
2. Guy Cohen – A Haim Zut black belt who was very active in the 80s. He lived in Philly for a short time and trained with Alan F. and his students so I have always heard a lot of great things. Many of the Israeli instructors still talk about him with respect. Considered one of the best KM fighters.
3. Chalacho Balai and Ilon Fadlan – Two Haim Zut black belts that I got the chance to train with last year. Great fighters and instructors. Also very friendly and approachable. My instructor always used to say that Haim Zut made the best fighters.
4.Shachar Klarfeld – used to run the KM program in the IDF for a long time. Now works with Eyals KMG.
5. Miki Asulin – has the distinction of being one of the original 10 who received a black belt from Imi. Was working with the IKMF for awhile. Not sure about now.
6. Ron Rotem – Eli Avikzar student and K.A.M.I instructor. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XoJyOHX4cuQ
Re: Krav Maga experts/instructors that AREN’T widely known
1. David Bluestein – old school Darren Levine black belt who I have heard good things about and saw him teach on video a few times. His clip in the KMW was the best in my opinion.
2. Jarrett Waldman – see above
3. Mitch Kasse – see above
Re: Krav Maga experts/instructors that AREN’T widely known
Question. Who is Catherine F. (Baltimore)? On this website (http://www.fightingarts.com/ubbthreads/printthread.php?Cat=0&Board=36&main=15935200&type=thread), she’s listed alongside Rick B. (Miami), Alan F. (Philadelphia), and Darren L. (Los Angeles) as returning from the 1981 instructor course and starting to teach in the US.
Also, is Kobi Lichtenstein considered well known outside of Krav Maga trivia circles? Of all the Krav Maga masters anywhere in the world, he and Nir Maman are who I’d be most psyched to train under.
Anyway, awesome thread and wicked list! Another name people should know is Tsahi Shemesh, a Gabi Noah black belt from IKM in NYC. Very humble, very helpful, IDF and Wingate background, doesn’t look like a UFC fighter, total bad ass.Finally, here at KMW in Southern California, mostly from what I’ve been able to observe and research, a few of the special under the radar people seem to be:
— the aforementioned Jarret Waldman and David Bluestein
— Kelly Campbell (who I think is the highest ranking female black belt from the various orgs but I could be wrong)
— Dan Sovetky (an early Darren Levine black belt who’s apparently a primer on the evolution of the system)
— Sean Amerson (Black Belt Masters Hall of Fame “Living Legend” Award Winner)
— Brent Ambrose (President of the California Association of Force Instructors, early student of Darren Levine and Eyal Yanilov)
I’m sure I’m leaving people off, and will refrain from naming my own teachers, who nonetheless rock.
Re: Krav Maga experts/instructors that AREN’T widely known
quote KevinMack:1. Raphy Elgrissy – he was the recipient of the second black belt ever given in Krav Maga. He now works with the Israeli Krav Magen Association K.A.M.I. Read his bio and check out the old photos. http://www.originalkravmaga.com/raphy%20elgrissy.html2. Alan Feldman – 3rd degree black belt under Imi. One of the original three American instructors trained to introduce KM to the United States along with Darren Levine and Rick Blitsein. Lives in Philadelphia and is my instructor.A few of his black belts..some of whom have been training with him since the 80s teach at my school. Great KM black belts that most will never get a chance to train with. http://atlantickravmaga.com/instructors.htm
3. Rick Blitstein – see above
4. Reuvin Maimon – One of the top Israeli KM black belts. Left the KM world in the 90s but still talked about.
5. Avi Avisidon – Head of K.A.M.I just old school…been around since the 70s.
6. Avital Zeisler – teaches at the IKMA school in NYC. Great female KM fighter. Young in the system but better than some people who have been around for awhile.
7. Dana Ben Kaplan – from Krav Maga San Diego. Been around for a long time but doesnt get a lot of recognition. Old school IKMF.
8. Patrick Lockton – IKMF rep in NYC.
9. Rhon Mizrachi – even though kind of well known he doesnt get as much attention as he should. Been training in KM since his youth. Totally old school style. He also has a number of black belts under him who are really,really good.
10. Katrina Reynolds – black belt under Rhon who just kicks ass.
Those are just the few who stand out to me. All from different associations. I did not mention any KMW instructors as I am sure someone on this board would know them better.
Doesn’t sound like you have much respect for the IKMF. Is there an issue?
Re: Krav Maga experts/instructors that AREN’T widely known
Catherine F. is Catherine Fogarty. She was one of the 20 or so Americans who went over and took the first instructors course in 1981. Darren,Rick and Alan I believe are the only ones who came back with green belts and full instructor certification but the others came back with other rankings. Not 100% sure about how that whole thing played out. Another graduate of that course from the Baltimore area was a guy named Mike Lichter.
Funny bit of history…the person who provided those students with their scholarships and funded the instructor course was a man named S. Daniel Abraham who was the founder of Slim fast.Before the course he brought Imi and his top students to the US for a demonstration tour. That tour group was made up of Imi,Eli Avikzar,Raphy Elgrissi,Eyal Yanilov and Reuvin Maimon. You can see pics of that trip on Raphys site that I linked below. He also put together the first American Krav Maga association but that kind of fell apart after a few years. It was made up of the Western Region(Darren) Eastern Region(Alan) and Central Region(Rick). In some old pics you can still see them wearing shirts that display their region.
Re: Krav Maga experts/instructors that AREN’T widely known
Here is a pic of Imi visiting Alan’s school in the 80s. Both Alan and the student with the white gi pants are wearing “Krav Maga eastern Region” shirts. The design is similar to the KMW “contact combat” design.
http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=281106761287&set=a.158603046287.129726.158600226287&type=3&theaterRe: Krav Maga experts/instructors that AREN’T widely known
Awesome pic Kevin. It’s great to have a guy who is so well educated of the history of the art. As a favor, could you ask Alan F. if he taught (had a seminar)on the University of Florida Campus in 81′. They were having trouble with women getting assaulted and brought in a guy named Mooky and another guy who was younger(possibly Alan F.) It was my first up close look at Krav Maga. I grew up in a military family, so we had a good understanding of the Israeli Defense Forces hand-to-hand program and it’s affectiveness. But after seeing these guys and working out with them I knew I had found what I wanted. Problem was back in those days, no instructors around where we we stationed.
Re: Krav Maga experts/instructors that AREN’T widely known
Thanks Kevin! Excellent stuff, really fascinating…
Re: Krav Maga experts/instructors that AREN’T widely known
Some old pics of printed materials in reference to the original association mentioned below.
Re: Krav Maga experts/instructors that AREN’T widely known
Well I don’t know about that Sean Amerson guy, but I’d have to add a few of mine.
Jon Pascal, best Law Enforcement instructor I’ve seen (along with Brent Ambrose)
Amir Perets – Amazing way to break down details, if I have a technique question that’s who I ask for the definitive explanation.
Sam Sade – No BS, straight to the point and brutal.
John Whitman – I always credit him with teaching me how to teach.
I can go on and on with some of the lower (1st, 2nd dan) instructors like;
Kevin Lewis – whose knowledge of the human body and reasoning out techniques has always been instrumental in my learning.
JR Merkle – high energy is great giving new students encouragement.
Mike Burton – as a stand up comedian teachs the most fun class.
Jerrett Arthur like JR teachs an extremely hard high energy class.
I like instructors who give the “why” based on Imi’s principals.
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