Fergus also discusses his coaching philosophy, including his belief that for kids in particular, sports should be fun first, with skill development coming later. That’s something I’m sure we’ll elaborate on in the future.
For now though, the article represents a great early endorsement from Geneva’s international community for the academy.
We are happy to announce new judo and karate classes for children in Geneva starting with the rentrée in September 2023.
Classes will be held in English, with an English native speaker – Fergus Dullaghan. Fergus, who is also a parent of two young girls, was a full-time, elite level athlete in the sport of judo for many years and represented both Wales and Ireland at an international level. He also holds a karate black belt.
Limited spaces available! In order to ensure the highest standard of tuition, we are limiting numbers to ten children per class.
Details
Where: All classes held in Elite Level MMA academy – Avenue Rothschild 22 (opposite Palais Wilson), Pâquis.
Cost: CHF 650 per year, per class (CHF 250 Sept- Dec – CHF 400 Jan – June). CHF 600 for the shorter class on Friday. (CHF 250 Sept-Dec – CHF 350 Jan- June)
Discounts: Judo and Karate discount: CHF 1,000 for both
Sibling discount:With one child paying full price, you get CHF 300 off for your second (and subsequent) children. (Please flag this with us when signing up.)
What is judo? Judo is an Olympic sport and traditional martial art from Japan. It was designed specifically as a way to teach children physical education and moral values, by Jigoro Kano, who was himself a primary school teacher. It is a sound basis for self-defence.
What is Karate? We practice Wado Ryu Karate, which comes from Japan. Wado ryu is softer and more fluid than Shotokan, which is the most practiced style around Geneva. This is because it has its basis in Japanese Ju Jitsu as well as karate.
Karate was an Olympic demonstration sport in the Tokyo 2020 Olympics. It encourages respect, discipline and self-control and is a solid foundation for self-defence as the children get older.
The self Defence Expert is the UK’s leading self-defence blog. Run by former policeman, boxer and judoka, Andrew Holland, it offers no nonsense insight into staying safe on the streets.
I was recently asked by Andrew to write a review on the MovNat Combatives instructor training course. MovNat is still an emerging practice – interest in it is rapidly growing, particularly among martial artists and the military, among other special interest groups.
So this was a good opportunity to explain what we do on the self-defence front. I regularly include MovNat Combatives principles into my self defence teaching, so if you would like a little bit more information about what that means, feel free to have a read.
Head Coach Fergus Dullaghan introduces the SWIFT Academy Geneva
What is the SWIFT Academy? The Swiss International Fight Team (SWIFT) is a movement and martial arts academy based in Geneva. What makes us different is our philosophy, teaching quality and the fact that our courses are in English.
What will you be teaching? We will be starting with movement and fitness classes for adults in January 2020 and we are hoping to begin introducing martial arts (starting with judo) in September for juniors and seniors. In terms of movement we will specifically be teaching Natural Movement (MovNat) and Ginastica Natural.
What are Ginastica Natural and MovNat? Both Ginastica Natural and MovNat are incredible ‘fitness’ systems that promote strength, endurance, flexibility and mobility. They are also closely aligned to our values and historically connected to the martial arts.
Firstly, Ginastica Natural is a mixture of hatha yoga, jiu jitsu and capoeira. But it has evolved into something very unique. There is a focus on breathing, mobility and movement flow. In this sense it has many of the benefits of yoga, but it also helps develop the strength and cardio needed in martial arts. It was founded in Brazil by jiu jitsu black belt and physical education specialist Alvaro Romano. It has since picked up a large following there, particularly among the jiu jitsu and MMA communities after being popularised by jiu jitsu legend Rickson Gracie. Globally, it is recognised as a core part of the ‘jiu jitsu lifestyle’
Ginastica Natural was also famously used to help rehabilitate Brazilian football legend Ronaldo following an injury prior to the 2002 football world cup. Because Alvero was a well known surfer, it is also widely practiced by competitive surfers and snow sports enthusiasts around the world. These days its fastest growth is probably among physios in the US who are using it for its injury prevention and rehab properties.
Alvero Romano – Ginastica Natural founder
MovNat is very different. Tracing its roots back to the French military and ‘La Methode Naturelle of Georges Hébert’, MovNat is heavily focused on developing practical, real-world fitness. For older people this may mean getting up and down off the floor to play with their grand children. For obstacle course racers it may mean being able to get over a high wall, for firemen it might mean being able to carry people.
The teaching methodology is highly systematic and scalable, so anyone can participate, regardless of fitness levels. The system is built on evolutionary movements, crawling, walking, running, jumping, lifting and carrying, throwing and catching and swimming. Striking and grappling are also part of the system (which is the link back to martial arts).
Thanks to the involvement of Katy Bowman, it is being rapidly taken up by movement enthusiasts from a pilates and yoga background. UFC champion Carlos Conduit’s involvement has encouraged martial artists like me to look at it seriously and other early adopters are military, rescue services, parkour runners, barefoot runners and rock climbers among others.
Because it aims at creating well-balanced, holistic fitness and movement abilities, MovNat can be adopted by almost anyone, whether to enhance their movement skills or to round-off their sports specific training.
SWIFT Academy head coach Fergus Dullaghan practicing MovNat in an urban setting
One of the great things about both these systems is that they can both be practiced in a natural environment, which gets you outdoors and into nature. But that said you can practice it indoors or in an urban setting (with MovNat) just as effectively from a physical standpoint.
How do people sign up? Just contact us with the contact form and I’ll be happy to help you!
