Remy A. Presas

Remy Presas

Remy Amador Presas (born December 19, 1936 in Hinigaran , Negros Occidental , † August 28, 2001 ) was a Filipino martial arts trainer.

At the age of 6 he started with his father Jose Bongco y Presas with the Arnis training. At the age of 14 he traveled through the Philippines and trained with various masters. When he returned to Hinigaran, he continued to train to perfect himself. He developed new techniques to counter the classical Arnis, and he changed the way of teaching: Instead of passing on his knowledge (as in the past) from a master to a student, he trained with whole school classes. He also required moral values ​​such as discipline from his students. In order to avoid injuries, from now on, blocking was no longer carried out on the partner's hand, but on the stick. This made it possible for everyone to train without endangering their health, and Arnis changed from an art of war to an art of combat or a sport for the purpose of self-defense.

Through the advocacy of President Ferdinand Marcos and Major General Jose Rancudo (who became aware of him in 1968 ), he succeeded in spreading Arnis back to the Philippines and teaching hundreds of coaches, as well as the police and the army.

He founded the Modern Arnis Federation of the Philippines (MAFP) and became more and more popular in the United States in 1975 . His technique continued to spread and he began making tours to mentor his students. Upon request, he also started in other countries, such as B. Japan , Germany , Holland , Finland , Sweden , England , Denmark , Australia , New Zealand and Canada to travel to teach his style. Remy Presas died of a brain tumor on August 28, 2001 at the age of 65.

Works

• Remy Presas: Modern Arnis. The Filipino Art of Stick Fighting. 1983.

Web links

• International Modern Arnis Federation (IMAF)