Avi Nardia

Avi Nardia is a Martial Artist and he is the Founder of KAPAP Israeli Krav Maga,^[1] ], a hand to hand combat system that includes elements of Lotar (Lohama Be terror - Anti Terror units style),^[2] ], Krav (IDF - Israeli Army Hand to Hand Program), Hagana Atzmit (Self Defense - Defensive Tactic - Israeli Operational Police Academy Hand to Hand program.) His wide martial arts experiences include: holding Black Belts in several Traditional Martial Arts styles with life-long training in many leading martial arts styles and Budo such as Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu instructor^[3] with a Black Belt under Machado RCJ, Kendo (6th Dan with Study under Kubo Akira), Iaido (5th Dan) and Jodo (5th Dan) teacher, Kyudo (4th Dan) teacher, Judo (3rd Dan) and Japanese Jiu-Jitsu instructor (7th Dan Most Senior Teacher with Kyoshi rank under Patrick McCarthy), Karate KU and Goju Ryu (Under Leon Pantanowitz, and Tadano Tomiyaki & Patrick McCarthy 6th Dan) Thai Box instructor. Avi also spent 8 years living and studying Martial Arts such as Uchi Deshi (living student) and devoted his life to the study of Martial Arts as his words reflect here - "Always student, sometimes teacher" and has tried to roll his life-experiences and knowledge into Reality Training as his words reflect here - "Better to be a student of reality than a master of Illusion." Adding to his varied study is also sports study: Avi is certified in sport study as an Olympic fencing coach, Athletic trainer and Sport Therapist and Fitness coach and also has different sports certifications including rappelling.

Major Avi Nardia (IDF Ret.) has been one of the leading official instructors for the Israeli Army (IDF) and Israeli Police in the fields of Counter-Terrorism, Riots, Hand-to-Hand, Operational Behavior and CQB (Close Quarters Battle.) He specializes in training Special Forces, counter-terrorism units, military, law enforcement, and civilians (including the disabled) all over the world in self-defense, defensive tactics and personal protection as well as 3rd Party Protection and both modern and traditional Martial Arts. He served in a special police Anti-Terror unit named YAMAM, as an intelligence team member and as a defensive tactics/CQB instructor with the rank of Staff Sergeant Major (NCO.) As an official unit instructor he designed and built programs for the unit and was in charge of all Hand-to-Hand programs, by molding mixed programs together that included fitness and firearms and this is where he developed the Hand-to-Hand modern Martial Art named KAPAP: Israeli Krav Maga. In his years of service in the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) reserve and mandatory service, he earned the rank of Major, took part in the “Shlom Hagalil” war in 1982, serving 3 years outside of Israel’s borders.

Major Nardia has trained law enforcement agencies and military units all over the world, including but not limited to Police Patrol, Correction Officers, SWAT, SRT, SERT, as well as Army, Marine, and Special Forces and Anti Terror units.

In Israel, he taught defensive tactics and operational behavior at the Operational Police Academy, which is charged with training the country’s entire police force. He is one of a handful of instructors to have been an official instructor for the Israeli army (IDF) Israeli Police as his service as Law Enforcement with rank of highest NCO and official Instructor Staff Sargent Major in Operational Police Academy, and Israeli Top and most prestigious and highest level as "Take Over unit" (in Counter-terror there are 3 types of units and Take Over is the highest level, engagement units and assistant units in 3 circles of the Counter-terror circle.) The counter-terror unit named YAMAM recruited him to build their Hand-to-Hand program and to teach it as a member and to also serve in their Intelligence team. This was an amazing achievement. Avi states that he was over the maximum age for inclusion (“the units maximum age limit to join was set at 25 years old and I was way over that! The commissioner himself signed special recruiting papers to get me in because the unit wanted and needed me. The induction process took a year of different tests and almost all instructors in Israel tried to apply for this prestigious work including members and formers members of the unit Yamam and many other good units. “After a year of testing me, I was happy and honored to be awarded the position, to be asked to join back into the service and to dress in the unit uniform and to serve on different missions under the unit such as the intelligence team. I studied the unit’s needs and unit’s missions and began to design my training agenda and to develop KAPAP: Israeli Krav Maga, based on reality rather than on imagination. As I had been in the field and on dangerous/challenging missions, it makes you better understand the proper needs of training. After a few years of serving there and after my son was born I decided I didn’t want to be involved anymore in any aggressive and violent/bloody situations and that I wanted my mindset to be different from that point onward and so I asked to change my position and left the unit.”

Biography

Avi Nardia's father served under Ariel Sharon in the 1950s. It was after 4 months that the legendary Unit 101 was relegated to be united with the Israeli Parratropers which made unit 890 the first paratroopers in Israel. “My father was one of the only and rare soldiers to hold the reverred red paratroopers wings in Israel which symbolized a jump in wartime. He served in a few wars and came from the same ‘old school army type’ as Military commanders like Ariel Sharon and Refael Eitan (Raful) “This old school generation built the IDF model” as Avi has said many times “… by experience and the manual has been written with a special ink made from blood, tears and sweat.” And it was not served to them, they found it by exploring and by following only one rule: ‘Can’t fail’; the word fail was not allowed. During his childhood Avi heard and studied the old school ways put forth by people like the legendary Marcel Tubias From his first instructors and others’ old school hand-to-hand and micro combat systems included at the time Judo, Jiujutsu and anything that worked and also the old KAPAP. Avi mentions that he didn’t like the old school “it was painful and brutal and as child it was hard hitting my hands on hard surfaces. I know it’s important, but any training has its own time. I can understand the value of that training but can say that the most important thing was not the hard-core physical training but the mental, moral and ethical aspects that were passed on to me. These aspects have the most value. Respect, honor and integrity are what’s mostly missing in today’s training and Martial Arts.”

Nardia served in the Israel Defense Forces as an official hand-to-hand instructor and safety officer in his reserve service. In the IDF, even as he was a member/leader if the YAMAM and a Police officer he was free from having to complete his Army service. He insisted that he continue on in his Army service and to keep teaching and developing the Hand-to-Hand and fitness programs to prepare new recruits to enable them to join the special forces under Lt. Colonel Avi Harush After more than 32 years of service and at the age of 55 he is free from his Army service.

After his demobilization Avi Nardia spent 8 years in Japan studying Karate, Jiu-Jitsu and Kendo. When he came back to Israel he started to train Israeli police special Yamam unit^[4] ]. During his years in Yamam he substantially improved and enriched modern KAPAP.^[5]

After the 9/11 terror attacks Nardia began to develop a new KAPAP version for civilian purposes. Subsequently he moved to live in Los Angeles, California where he opened his first KAPAP Academy. Today he serves as an expert to SWAT schools in different countries and as an official instructor holding master classes on defensive tactics and operational behavior worldwide.^[3][6] For example, due to his efforts, KAPAP is becoming more and more popular in Asia including Singapore, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Korea and China.^[7]

As a leading face-to-face instructor he is also considered to be a counter-terrorism expert.

Avi Nardia is the founder and chief instructor of KAPAP.^[8]

He is a counter-terrorism and close quarters battle expert who has trained police patrol and corrections officers, SWAT, SRT, SERT, Army, Marine, Special Forces, and many other counter-terror, police, and military agencies throughout the world.

YAMAM Letter of Service:: During his years as a reserve officer, Avi Nardia (Major, IDF Res.) served as an official hand-to-hand instructor and program safety officer for the Israeli special forces candidate program. Mr Nardia served as an intelligence officer and official close-quarters-battle trainer for one of the world’s most elite units: Israeli YAMAM. He was also an official instructor of defensive tactics and operational behavior at the Israeli Operational Police Academy.

With 45 years of experience in martial arts, Master Avi holds numerous ranks including 7th dan Jujutsu, 6th dan Kendo, and black belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu.

Avi Nardia is based out of Tel Aviv, Israel and may be contacted for KAPAP seminars and CQB training throughout the world.

RANKS HELD:: Major, Israeli Army (IDF), Master Sergeant: YAMAM, Master Sergeant: Operational Police Academy, 7th Dan AKJJ Jujutsu, 6th Dan Kendo, BJJ black belt under Professor John Machado, 6th Dan Koryu Uchinadi, 5th Dan Iaido, 5th Dan Jodo, 4th Dan Kyudo, 3rd Dan Judo, 5th Dan The Japanese Federation of Martial Arts, Certified Thai Box Coach under Andre Zeitoun.

CERTIFICATIONS:: Police Defensive Tactics Instructor, Certified Olympic fencing Instructor (Foil, Saber, Epee) by Wingate Sport Institute, Certified Jiujutsu Instructor by Israeli Ministry of Sport, Certified Kendo Instructor by Israeli Ministry of Sport, Certified Thai Boxing Instructor by Israeli Ministry of Sport, Certified Coach by Wingate Sport Institute, Certified Fitness Instructor by Tel Aviv University, Certified Personal Trainer by Tel Aviv University, Certified Athletic Trainer by Wingate Sport Institute, Certified Sport Therapist by Wingate Sport Institute, Certified Rapelling Instructor by Wingate Sport Institute, Certified Diving Instructor, Certified Boxing Instructor, Certified in Israeli and Traditional Martial Arts (Kendo, Iaido, Jodo, Jiujutsu, BJJ, Muay Thai, Karate, Kyudo), Member Israeli Rugby National team for 5 years along with other top teams as Physiotherapist/Athletic Trainer, Certified Krav Maga Instructor by the Israeli Army (IDF), Certified Hagana Atzmit/Defensive Tactics Instructor by the Israeli Police, Certified Shooting Instructor (Rifle, Shotgun, Handgun), NRA Certified Range Safety Officer, Certified PPCT Defensive Tactics Instructor, Certified Saber Law Enforcement Aerosol Projectors Instructor.

CLIENTS:: U.S. Marshalls, U.S. Navy, U.S. Marine Corps, U.S. Army, SOCOM, Italian Carabineri, Serbian Gendarmerie, Brazil Special Forces B.O.P.E., Royal Canadian Mounted Police R.C.M.P., Orange County Sheriff Department S.W.A.T., California, Department of Public Safety, Texas, Houston METRO police S.W.A.T., Texas, Lancaster County SERT Team, Pennsylvania Connecticut SORT Team, Connecticut, Private Security Companies… and more.

Articles and books by Avi Nardia

• Avi Nardia, Tim Boehlert, Ken Akiyama, Benjamin Krajmalnik,Patrick McCarthy BUDO International (magazine)
• Jim Wagner, Major Avi Nardia, Inside Israel, Black Belt (magazine)
• Avi Nardia, Albert Timen, Israeli Martial Arts: Avi Nardia on Using Human Pressure Points in Kapap Techniques, Black Belt Magazine, May 2, 2012.
• Avi Nardia, TERRORISM AROUND US (abridged), a counter-terrorism article written by Avi Nardia
• Avi Nardia, Albert Timen, Combat Concepts: Martial Arts of the Israeli Special Forces

References

External links

• Avi Nardia OFFICIAL