Krav
Maga
was
developed
by
Czechoslovakian-born
Imi
Lichtenfeld,
a
champion
heavyweight
boxer,
an
expert
in
Ju-Jitsu
and
Judo
as
well
as
a
dancer
and
trapeze
acrobat.
Imi's
family
was
forced
to
emigrate,
eventually
landing
in
what
was
then
Palestine
and
is
now
known
as
Israel.
Soon
after
the
Israeli
state
was
established
in
1948,
Imi
was
asked
to
develop
a
system
of
fighting
and
self-defense
for
the
Israeli
Defense
Force
(IDF).
Imi
carefully
refined
Krav
Maga
during
his
career
as
chief
instructor
of
hand
to
hand
combat
for
the
IDF.
Beginning
with
special
forces
units
like
the
Haganah,
Palmack,
and
Palyam,
Krav
Maga
became
the
official
combatives
training
for
all
military
personnel,
Israeli
police
and
security
forces.
Faced
with
the
task
of
preparing
both
fit
and
out-of-shape
soldiers,
Imi
developed
a
comprehensive
system
that
relied
on
simple,
instinctive
moves
rather
than
rigid
techniques
requiring
years
of
training.
In
1964,
Imi
retired
from
the
IDF
and
began
teaching
Krav
Maga
to
civilians,
law
enforcement,
and
military
applications.
In
1978,
Imi
and
several
of
his
students
created
the
Krav
Maga
Association,
which
was
aimed
at
promoting
the
teaching
of
Krav
Maga
in
Israel
and
throughout
the
world.
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