Martial Arts Of The World - Webs
Martial Arts Of The World - Webs Martial Arts Of The World - Webs
306 Krav Maga Krav Maga Krav maga (Hebrew; contact combat) is an Israeli martial art that was developed in the 1940s for use by the Israeli military and intelligence services. The creator of the system was Imi Lichtenfeld, an immigrant to Israel from Bratislava, Slovak (formerly Czechoslovakia). Today it is the official fighting art of the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) and has gained popularity worldwide as an effective and devastating fighting method. It is a fighting art exclusively; sport variants do not exist. Krav maga has earned high marks from police forces and elite military units worldwide as a practical martial art that is easy to learn. Although a fairly recently developed martial art, its growth has been impressive and shows no sign of abating. Imi Lichtenfeld was born in Budapest in the Austro-Hungarian Empire in 1910. The family later moved to Bratislava. His father, Samuel, had been a circus performer and taught Imi wrestling, physical fitness, and various martial art techniques he had learned from his years of travels. Samuel Lichtenfeld was also a chief inspector and self-defense instructor for the Bratislava police department. Imi developed into an athlete and won several wrestling, boxing, and gymnastics competitions throughout his youth. In the 1930s, the political situation for Jews in Czechoslovakia began to turn grim. Germany had become a Nazi state characterized by rabid anti-Semitism as its ideological base. This anti-Semitism exploded onto the streets of Bratislava. Nazi sympathizers created gangs and political parties who began to harass and physically assault Jews on the streets. Imi often found himself in the middle of fights, and because of his background, gave self-defense lessons to fellow Jews. Lichtenfeld soon found that there was a vast difference between the sport combat systems he had studied and actual street fighting. The Nazi and fascist gang members had no qualms about using knives and rocks as weapons or attacking the vital points of the human body, none of which was allowed in sporting events. Fortunately, Lichtenfeld was quick to adapt his knowledge to the new realities in order to defend himself successfully. These experiences, however, fixed in his mind the necessity of developing an actual combat system as opposed to relying for defense on sport fighting constrained by rules. Imi left Bratislava and immigrated to Palestine (later Israel) in 1942. Palestine was at that time assigned by the League of Nations as a mandate to Great Britain. Immigration by Jews to Palestine was severely restricted, despite the Nazi death camps that were being used to kill European Jews. In addition, Jewish residents of Palestine were under attacks constantly from the Arabs in the region. To combat these attacks, the Jewish residents had formed the Hagana, the forerunner of the IDF. The Hagana’s purpose
was to bring as many Jews as possible through the British blockade and to fight back Arab assaults. Lichtenfeld joined the Hagana soon after his arrival and became a self-defense instructor for Hagana soldiers and special operations units. Weapons were scarce at this time for Jews, so hand-to-hand combat was a vital necessity. From his arrival until 1948, Lichtenfeld constantly worked on the theories and curriculum of what he eventually labeled krav maga. He developed his system according to three criteria: It had to be effective, it had to be simple enough to be learned by anyone with any type of body shape and size, and it had to be learned quickly. In 1947, Israel was declared an independent nation by the United Nations, a decision that quickly led to war between Israel and its surrounding Arab neighbors. Despite overwhelming odds, the Israelis won the conflict and established the independent State of Israel as a homeland for Jews. World War II had left devastating psychological and physical scars on Jews. The Nazis had killed six million, one-third of the total number of Jews worldwide. Many of the survivors fled to Israel. The “lesson” of the Holocaust, as the destruction of European Jews came to be known, imprinted on Israelis the realization that the survival of Israel would depend on Jews alone. Even after the victory of 1948, Israel would have to remain in a state of high alert because of the hostility of its Arab neighbors. This readiness is reflected in the intensely combative nature of krav maga. By the time the IDF was fully organized, Lichtenfeld had prepared the curriculum of krav maga. All Israeli soldiers were given basic training in the system. Israeli special operatives received advanced training. Often Israeli Mossad (Secret Service) agents were sent into regions where carrying a weapon was not practical. Krav maga was the only “weapon” that these operatives could use. In 1961, several of the Mossad agents who captured the infamous Nazi leader Adolph Eichmann in Argentina were krav maga experts. Krav maga is, therefore, one of the most modern martial arts, and it is also one of the few that was developed directly for battlefield and urban combat. The constant state of warfare and terrorist attacks that have become a part of Israeli life have meant that any system of self-defense would have to be effective and realistic. Due to these extreme circumstances, Lichtenfeld had, in effect, a laboratory for the development of the art. Soldiers and practitioners in combat conditions who were forced to use the art for self-defense could report back to Lichtenfeld which techniques were effective. Lichtenfeld consequently modified techniques based on these actual experiences. As a result, krav maga is a proven warfare combat system. Although the system was originally intended for the military, by the early 1960s Lichtenfeld was teaching krav maga to civilians. Because of in- Krav Maga 307
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- Page 278 and 279: 258 Kenpô Kempô grand master, the
- Page 280 and 281: 260 Ki/Qi See also Kajukenbo; Karat
- Page 282 and 283: 262 Ki/Qi jujitsu. Martial artists
- Page 284 and 285: 264 Knights crossbow, or harquebus.
- Page 286 and 287: 266 Knights tury, when the benefice
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- Page 290 and 291: 270 Knights adopt those hereditary
- Page 292 and 293: 272 Knights hope of being knighted
- Page 294 and 295: 274 Knights acquire dominions and f
- Page 296 and 297: 276 Knights which time the tourname
- Page 298 and 299: 278 Knights their own troop and fou
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- Page 302 and 303: 282 Knights glect. Instead, many ne
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- Page 306 and 307: 286 Kobudô, Okinawan Kobudô, Okin
- Page 308 and 309: 288 Kobudô, Okinawan Japanese Infl
- Page 310 and 311: 290 Kobudô, Okinawan various forms
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- Page 316 and 317: 296 Korea nese withdrawal. Moreover
- Page 318 and 319: 298 Korea KTA and changed the name
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- Page 324 and 325: 304 Koryû Bugei, Japanese student
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- Page 360 and 361: 340 Middle East ture battles. The c
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- Page 364 and 365: 344 Mongolia to gain punching power
- Page 366 and 367: Two Inner Mongolian wrestlers await
- Page 368 and 369: 348 Mongolia range of up to 500 yar
- Page 370 and 371: 350 Muay Thai Sinor, Denis. 1990. T
- Page 372 and 373: 352 Muay Thai (Praditbatuga 2000).
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306 Krav Maga<br />
Krav Maga<br />
Krav maga (Hebrew; contact combat) is an Israeli martial art that was developed<br />
in the 1940s for use by the Israeli military and intelligence services.<br />
<strong>The</strong> creator of the system was Imi Lichtenfeld, an immigrant to Israel from<br />
Bratislava, Slovak (formerly Czechoslovakia). Today it is the official fighting<br />
art of the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) and has gained popularity worldwide<br />
as an effective and devastating fighting method. It is a fighting art exclusively;<br />
sport variants do not exist. Krav maga has earned high marks<br />
from police forces and elite military units worldwide as a practical martial<br />
art that is easy to learn. Although a fairly recently developed martial art,<br />
its growth has been impressive and shows no sign of abating.<br />
Imi Lichtenfeld was born in Budapest in the Austro-Hungarian Empire<br />
in 1910. <strong>The</strong> family later moved to Bratislava. His father, Samuel, had<br />
been a circus performer and taught Imi wrestling, physical fitness, and<br />
various martial art techniques he had learned from his years of travels.<br />
Samuel Lichtenfeld was also a chief inspector and self-defense instructor<br />
for the Bratislava police department. Imi developed into an athlete and<br />
won several wrestling, boxing, and gymnastics competitions throughout<br />
his youth.<br />
In the 1930s, the political situation for Jews in Czechoslovakia began<br />
to turn grim. Germany had become a Nazi state characterized by rabid<br />
anti-Semitism as its ideological base. This anti-Semitism exploded onto the<br />
streets of Bratislava. Nazi sympathizers created gangs and political parties<br />
who began to harass and physically assault Jews on the streets. Imi often<br />
found himself in the middle of fights, and because of his background, gave<br />
self-defense lessons to fellow Jews.<br />
Lichtenfeld soon found that there was a vast difference between the<br />
sport combat systems he had studied and actual street fighting. <strong>The</strong> Nazi<br />
and fascist gang members had no qualms about using knives and rocks as<br />
weapons or attacking the vital points of the human body, none of which<br />
was allowed in sporting events. Fortunately, Lichtenfeld was quick to adapt<br />
his knowledge to the new realities in order to defend himself successfully.<br />
<strong>The</strong>se experiences, however, fixed in his mind the necessity of developing<br />
an actual combat system as opposed to relying for defense on sport fighting<br />
constrained by rules.<br />
Imi left Bratislava and immigrated to Palestine (later Israel) in 1942.<br />
Palestine was at that time assigned by the League of Nations as a mandate<br />
to Great Britain. Immigration by Jews to Palestine was severely restricted,<br />
despite the Nazi death camps that were being used to kill European Jews.<br />
In addition, Jewish residents of Palestine were under attacks constantly<br />
from the Arabs in the region. To combat these attacks, the Jewish residents<br />
had formed the Hagana, the forerunner of the IDF. <strong>The</strong> Hagana’s purpose