Pablo Cardenas is a Sifu in Wing Chun kung Fu. Sifu Pablo trained in Wing Chun under the legendary Grandmaster William Cheung of which he represents in North Queensland. Sifu Pablo has been serving the community of Townsville since 2005, offering traditional Wing Chung Kung Fu, Brazilian Jiu Jitsu and MMA training. . Sifu Pablo is the owner and principal instructor of UMF Academy, formerly NQ Wing Chun Kung Fu Academy. Sifu Pablo began his training at age 14 and has been a devotee of the art ever since. In 1984, Pablo enlisted in the Australian Regular Army and in his 21 years of service he was selected for an exchange program with the UK Ministry of Defence and was deployed to East Timor as part of the UN peacekeeping task-force. Sifu Pablo has trained with numerous military units around the world, including the US Army, US Marine Corps and the Gurkhas. Sifu remains active in the Australian Army as a reservist and is at UMF Academy instructing full-time. through his understanding of martial arts and military life Sifu Pablo has been able to change the lives of hundreds of students that have trained in his school, Sifu Pable is dedicated to the betterment of his students ohysically, mentally and morally.

Geordie McTaggart is a 5th Degree Black Belt with the International Taekwondo Federation (ITF) Geordie is a Martial Arts Instructor and Personal Trainer who began his martial arts journey when he was just 6 years of age. Geordie has been interested in Martial Arts and Fitness training since he saw his first Bruce Lee movie. Geordies father also came from a martial arts background with experience as professional wrestler and a variety of other martial arts also, so t was inevitable that Geordie would begin at an early age. Early training consisted of Wrestling, Judo and Karate! This continued until 1988 when his little brother Duncan and he began Rhee Tae Kwon-Do together. Four years later Geordie received his first Black Belt and his quest as a serious beginner began. Geordie established his own martial arts school “Denrai Freestyle Tae Kwon-Do” in 2005, which is a mixture of Tae Kwon-Do and other arts in which he became skilled. Due to his nearly 15 year career in Security for the Department of Defence, he began private one on one lessons in his garage until demand increased and time allowed for classes to begin. This was October of 2013! Geordie’s business has now grown to become an international school with branches across Australia, as well as branches in New Zealand that are run by his brother Duncan. Geordie has also been working as a personal trainer since 2011. Geordie has studied and acquired rankings in various other Martial Arts along his 42 year Martial Arts journey. These include: Karate, Tai Chi, Ninjitsu, Krav Maga, Wing Chun Kung Fu, Jun Fan Jeet Kune Do, Filipino Kali, Muay Thai, Machado Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, Goju Kalis, Kenpo 5.0 and even Fight Choreography for Movies. Geordie has also had the privilege of training with some of the worlds best including Grand Master Chong Chul Rhee, Chief Instructor John Ragonessi, Bruce Lee’s most senior student Guro Dan Inosanto, Simo Cookie Vassiliou, Guro Joel Clarke, Sifu Francis Fong, Master Jean-Jacques Machado, Hanshi Tino Ceberano, Master Richard Norton, Master Jeff Speakman and Master Michael Muleta as well as some others. Geordie is a Tae Kwon-Do multiple world champion and gold medalist competing in Self Defense, Breaking, Single and Team Patterns as well as Weaponry, Model Sparring and other events. He was inducted into the “2019 ITF Pioneer Awards” for Tae Kwon-Do Excellence. And inducted into the “2020 General Choi Hong Hi Hall of Honours” for Outstanding International Instructor. He was also awarded the Action Martial Arts Magazine “World Award” and inducted into the 2022 “Action Martial Arts Magazine Hall of Honours”. Geordie looks forward to continuing to train and teach Taekwondo and ready to share his skill sets and expertise with new students.

Dan Flint is a 9th Dan in taekwondo. Dan runs his own full time martial arts centre and has been teaching the art of Taekwondo for over 40 years. As chief instructor to many thousands of students in his network, Dan is held in very high regard amongst all his peers and students alike. Dan Flint runs a martial arts family with both daughters and son training and working in his centre. As a caring and innovative coach, Dan Flint continues to churn out champions as he has done year in year out for many years.

Sharelle Iversen is a 1st Dan Black belt in Karate. Sempai Sharelle began training in 1995 and proved to be a committed and strong individual. After several years of absence due to having children whe returned to fulfill her original goal of achieving her Black belt. This she did with focus and courage and now she leads as an example to others who look for a trustworthy leader. As a martial arts practitioner, Sharelle is a formidable foe, as a teacher she is a compassionate and empathetic teacher who guides her students from the heart, and as a person Sharelle, is committed, loyal and focussed. Sempai Sharelle has gained great respect from her peers and is a very popular and accomplished member of the Teshinkai karate team. Sempai Sharelle now operates regular classes and has become a favoured instructor to many students that call her their teacher.

Peter Hogath is a 2nd Dan in Karate Sempai Peter has been training in Kyokushin since 1973 under Hanshi Eddie Ermin and Shihan Peter Volke. Known as a passionate tournament competitor in his time fighting the tournament circuit in Australia from 1974 until 1977, Sempai Peter has recently returned to Shinkyokushin after a hiatus. He has dedicated himself to Shinkyokushin’s growth in South Australia by opening Ironside Dojo in his garage with the aim of producing top practitioners in the art. Sempai Peter’s ethos is on strong and focused training, with a rediscovered joy for the applications of karate in a self defence situation. With his focus on the junior class instruction, Sempai Peter provides a welcoming family environment for people of all races, nations, religions, creeds and identities. Sempai Peter has also worked in security, and was a serving member of the Australian Defence Force from 1970 until 1973. He is a qualified level 3 First Aid Responder and maintains a DHS Working with Children Check, as well as his internationally recognised judges and referee training.

Kancho (Founder of School) Ino Maquirang is a 7th Degree Black Belt in Karate with over 45 years of international experience in the martial arts. Kancho specialises in developing his students over many years - he has started teaching children as young as 4 years old and mentored them even after their university studies. He has successfully competed in over 250 tournaments all over the world and has developed and coached students of all ages to compete at the highest levels. He has instructed and participated in demonstrations and seminars in Japan, New Zealand, Australia, England, Italy, South Africa, Hong Kong/China and throughout the United States, and has appeared in several instructional videos and books. In 1997, he was inducted into the Blitz Magazine Hall of Fame as the Outstanding Kata Competitor of the Year. He received his Masters from New York University (1994) and his Bachelors from Georgetown University (1987). Kancho Ino founded Jin Sei Ryu Karate-Do after teaching and observing many students, refining his teaching approaches, and further developing his personal philosophy of karate-do. Jin Sei Ryu Karate-Do represents his personal experiences and journey in karate which he and his family now wish to share with others.