(AP/USA Today) Krav Maga, a self-defense system first developed to train Israeli soldiers, is now making its way into fitness centers and martial arts studios across the U.S. Krav Maga, Hebrew for "contact combat," is the creation of Imi Lichtenfeld, who taught self-defense to the new Israeli army at the time of Israel's War of Independence. "He needed to teach something that was simple, easy to use, and easy to remember under great stress," said John Whitman, president of the Los Angeles-based Krav Maga Worldwide. "They were pulling everyone into the Israeli army, so the self-defense system had to work for people of different abilities and backgrounds without a lot of time to train." Lichtenfeld, who died in 1998, brought Krav Maga to the U.S. about 20 years ago. Krav Maga instructors now train more than 300 federal, state, and local law enforcement departments, Whitman said.
2005-02-25 00:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive