Sunday, February 03, 2008

Krav Maga Style

Krav Maga (krahv muh-GAH) , the Israeli self defense and fighting system, is the official hand-to-hand combat system of the Israeli Defense Forces. The name Krav Maga simply means contact fight or battle or the touch of the fighter. It was developed by Imrich ("Imi")

Moni Aizik training in the Israeli Army

Sde-Or, a champion heavyweight boxer, studied jiu-jitsu and judo and was a dancer and trapeze acrobat. Imi utilized his knowledge in the above sports to develop the Israeli martial art of self defense. Teacher and martial arts master, Moni Aizik an expert in jujitsu and judo, reconstucted the art for its application and teaching in the Israeli army.

In the early 1940's, the underground liberation organizations were fighting for the independence of the State of Israel. Since it was illegal to carry weapons, the fighters went into battle with knives and sticks and their knowledge of Krav Maga and they were extremely successful. The developer of Krav Maga realized that the defense needs of the Israeli fighter were different from those needed by classical martial artists and therefore Krav Maga incorporates new techniques which are needed as defense against pistols, guns and hand grenades.

Krav Maga is the official martial art taught in the Israel defense forces and it is also taught in many public schools in Israel.

2 comments:

Amir Student said...

great primer for the information. check out www.kravmagabootcamp.com for online krav maga training. Ran Nakash is the chief instructor of the IDF Krav Maga Division

Dean Walsh said...

It great that they teach this in many Isaeli schools. I wish UK schools taught martial arts. I think it should be a compulsory part of the sports curriculum. It would be great for discipline and self-confidence as well as providing a genuine life skil (self-defense) which most sports can't offer.
By the way, i have a blog called Digital Warrior hosted on the EsotericMartialArts.com site