GGM ERNESTO A. PRESAS SR.
GREAT GRANDMASTER ERNESTO A. PRESAS SR.
Kombatan is a Filipino martial arts system. The founder of the system was Ernesto Amador Presas.The style is known for its double stick techniques, but it features other stick and blade techniques, as well as empty-hand methods. He was born in the coastal town of Hinigaran, Negros Occidental on 1945-05-20. At age 8 he began his martial arts training under his father, Jose Presas, a well known escrima practitioner at that time. He went on to be an athlete in his college years, participating in various sports. His training in the martial arts is eclectic, having studied judo, jujutsu, karate, and various forms of Filipino and Japanese weaponry. He was Lakan Sampu (10th Dan) in arnis and Mano Mano (hand-to-hand combat) and Lakan Walo (8th Dan) in Philippine Weaponry. Remy Presas recognized that the classical arts of their country were losing their appeal and therefore slowly dying. He modernized the native arts into an effective fighting system that would be appealing to martial arts students living in modern Filipino society and called it Modern Arnis. His dream to re-introduce the native arts led to the development of Ernesto Presas continued the work after his brother emigrated to the US in 1975. He changed his version of the art a lot in the nineties and then he re-christen his version of the art to the name of Kombatan. Ernesto dream was to unite Filipino martial arts to functional entities. For this dream he sacrificed over 30 years studying and practising the vast amount of Filipino martial arts methods and books. Ernesto succeeded in what most only dream of. He developed two martial art styles and made them internationally known and praised. Kombatan, based on armed skills, and Modern Mano Mano, based on unarmed skills, are the products of Grandmaster Presas’ work and will live in the history and future of martial arts. He was awarded the Grandmaster´s Award –trophy, which is awarded only to the great internationally known people in martial arts circles. In 1970 he began to teach the Filipino martial arts in the University of the Philippines and Lyceum of the Philippines. Later other classes expanded to the University of Santo Tomas, Central Colleges of the Philippines, the Far Eastern Military Academy, Philippine National Police Academy, and the Philippines Air Force Officer's School. Also in 1970 he was invited to Japan at Expo '70' to demonstrate Arnis. He quickly earned the respect of many of the Japanese masters who called his Art Filipino Kendo. After returning home, with the help of his friend Frederico Lazo, he opened his first club. Later he formed the Modern Arnis Association of the Philippines International and the ARJUKEN (which stands for Arnis, Jujutsu, Kendo) Karate Association to formally spread the art within the Philippines. In 1975 he founded the International Philippine Martial Arts Federation (IPMAF) and began to spread the Filipino art to the outside world. In time his Arnis Presas Style and techniques became widely accepted and adopted by countries in Europe, the United States, Canada, Mexico, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Saudi Arabia and Puerto Rico. He has also published numerous books and videos and has been featured on the cover of Inside Kung Fu magazine with the title "Ernesto Presas: The Father of Mano-Mano" (which art he created). Ernesto Presas traveled the world teaching seminars to spread his art. Many visited the Philippines to take lessons from him in Manila. |
