To set Valentin's interview in context we also have a feature from David Kirillov on the city of Tver. This is the place where a young Mikhail Ryabko first began to teach and where many of the current leading teachers come from. Of course there is still a lot of Systema training going on in Tver and David shares some of his experiences from his recent visit there.
One thing I found particularly interesting was how David describes the respect and mutual recognition that exists there between different schools / styles. This strikes me as a very healthy situation and one a million miles away from the us vs them mindset too often found in the "martial arts" world.
It is also interesting how Systema is viewed and trained in Tver as a complete system. I think like many people Systema first came to my notice as a military-type style. Of course as we look deeper we see there is so much more to be gained than some combatives / fighting techniques. First time contributor Kalvin Smith expands on this in his Systema is for Everyone article. Kalvin is originally an Essex boy now resident in Sydney Australia, where he runs the excellent Warriors Path Systema school.
We alsu have our Five Minute Class feature on a breathing exercise, Club Profile and the usual workshop news. Please get in touch if you have any comments about the magazine or would like to contribute in any way
Issue Three will be out in the New Year so I'd like to take this opportunity to say thanks again and wish you all a Happy Christmas!
Rob Poyton
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Black Belt is one of the longest running martial art publications. First published in 1961, Black Belt features interviews with the world’s most prestigious martial artists and historical pieces on the philosophies of various combat styles, as well as in-depth coverage of the latest techniques, weapons, self-defense systems, training regimens and industry trends.
You can order copies direct from Black Belt or some signed copies may still be available from Toronto HQ
EDITORIAL
Hi and welcome to Issue Two of Systema International!
First off a big thanks to everyone who contributed too, subscribed to and read our first issue (still available for download). To date we have had over 1,000 reads of Issue One, so thank you for all your support!
I'm sure you will find this issues just as interesting and informative. Our main feature is an interview with Valentin Talanov, one of the teachers who was around at the birth of modern Systema. Valentin is an excellent instructor with deep understanding of Systema as well as a wealth of stories on training in the "old days", some of which he shares in our interview