FOUNDER & HEAD INSTRUCTOR · CADRE ACADEMY
Leon Koh
Self-Defence · Combatives · Martial Arts Education
Leon Koh is a Singapore-based self-defence and Jiu-Jitsu educator, martial arts master and founder of CADRE Academy.
With nearly four decades of martial arts experience and approximately 30 years of teaching, his work spans practical self-defence, Integrated Jiu-Jitsu, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, defensive tactics and professional coaching.
His approach combines technical expertise with an understanding of how people learn, make decisions and adapt under pressure.
His professional background includes national-level coaching, tertiary education, regional leadership and international martial arts appointments.
THE PERSON BEHIND THE PRACTICE
Nearly Four Decades of Martial Arts.
Three Decades of Teaching.
The Beginning
My martial arts journey began in the 1980s. By the 90's, I had started teaching.
I have always learned best through movement and experience. Memorising sequences of techniques never came naturally to me.
In my early years, training often meant learning prescribed movements, collecting techniques from instructors and martial arts magazines, and practising them repeatedly.
When something wasn't working, the advice was usually to practise more.
But knowing what to practise wasn't the same as understanding how to improve.
When Training Met Reality
An encounter overseas challenged what I thought I understood about martial arts and self-defence.
Techniques I had practised and taught were not immediately accessible. The situation unfolded differently from training, and even the physical interaction felt unfamiliar.
“Why was something I could perform in training so difficult to access in a real situation?”
But the more difficult question was not about my own performance.
“If I struggled to apply what I had been teaching, how could I expect my students to rely on those same skills?”
I began questioning whether I was doing justice to the trust my students had placed in me.
That experience fundamentally changed how I viewed, practised and taught martial arts and self-defence.
From Experience to Understanding
My search for answers led me towards reality-based and scenario-based training, defensive tactics, applied psychology and a deeper understanding of how people learn and respond under pressure.
Through continued training, teaching and study, I came to recognise that learning a technique and understanding the principles behind it are not necessarily the same thing.
Today, I teach techniques as examples of underlying ideas and principles, rather than fixed answers to specific problems.
Understanding those principles helps students recognise opportunities, make decisions and adapt when circumstances change.
Repetition remains important. But repetition should develop understanding and adaptability, not simply the ability to reproduce movements.
My goal is not to give students a collection of answers to remember. It is to help them develop the understanding and adaptability to respond when reality does not follow the script.
PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE & LEADERSHIP
Beyond the Training Floor
Leon's professional experience spans tertiary education, national-level coaching, defensive tactics, regional corporate leadership and martial arts governance. Throughout his career, he has continued teaching martial arts while developing his understanding of how people learn, perform and adapt.
Education & Human Performance
Leon is an Associate Lecturer at Republic Polytechnic, teaching subjects relating to sport and exercise psychology, physical activity and inclusive participation.
His academic teaching complements his practical coaching experience, connecting how people learn, develop skills and perform with the demands of physical training.
National Coaching & Technical Development
A former coach of the Singapore National Taekwondo Team and Combined University Taekwondo Team, Leon has experience in competitive athlete development, technical instruction and coaching.
He currently serves as Head of Poomsae for Changmookwon Taekwondo Singapore, contributing to technical development and standards within the organisation.
Defensive Tactics & Professional Advisory
Leon's experience in defensive tactics includes training enforcement officers from government agencies and providing specialist instruction in close-combat skills
He also serves as a technical advisor to Kingstride, which provides instructors for Singapore Armed Forces close-combat training and conducts instructor development programmes for personnel responsible for delivering that training.
Through his consultancy with Kingstride, Leon has also contributed technical advice to the review and development of SAF close-combat training curricula.
Organisational Leadership & Governance
Leon has held senior leadership and administrative appointments within martial arts organisations.
His appointments include:
Vice-President,
Global Traditional Taekwondo Federation Singapore
— Current
Assistant Secretary-General,
Singapore Taekwondo Federation
— Former
Vice-President,
Kummooyeh Singapore
— Former
Regional Corporate Leadership
Alongside his martial arts teaching, Leon's professional career included nine years of military service followed by regional corporate leadership.
At InsightAsia Research Group, he progressed from Regional Manager to Regional Director of Operations, overseeing operations across eight Asian markets. He also concurrently served as Acting Managing Director of its Indonesia operations.
His responsibilities included operational management, quality standards and advising country leadership teams.
Leon continued teaching martial arts throughout his corporate career and provided operational consulting to InsightAsia while establishing CADRE Academy.
Lineage, Responsibility & Continuing Development
Leon's martial arts development has been shaped by decades of training, mentorship and technical exchange across different disciplines.
His relationships with Avi Nardia and Professor John D. Machado extend beyond personal training to include responsibilities for technical development, representation and the continuation of their respective martial arts traditions.
Leon Koh and Avi Nardia during a technical exchange.
Avi Nardia —
KAPAP Krav Maga, Integrated Jiujitsu &
Close Distance Combat
Leon has trained extensively under Avi Nardia, whose approach to KAPAP Krav Maga, Integrated Jiujitsu and Close Distance Combat (CDC) has significantly influenced his technical development and teaching.
In 2025, Leon received his 10th Dan recognition under Avi Nardia in KAPAP Krav Maga–Israeli Jiujitsu.
Beyond rank, Avi Nardia has entrusted Leon with the custodianship of KAPAP Krav Maga within Avi Nardia Academy. This responsibility involves preserving its technical heritage, maintaining continuity and supporting the development of instructors who continue to teach the system.
Leon also serves as Avi Nardia Academy's representative in Asia for Integrated Jiujitsu and Close Distance Combat (CDC), supporting the continued development of these training systems.
Close Distance Combat is a distinct system created by Avi Nardia, with its own principles, standards and technical lineage. It reflects his continuing development of practical combat and defensive training, with an emphasis on preparation, adaptability and responsible application.
Professor John D. Machado
— Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu
Leon is a first degree Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt and Professor recognised under Professor John D. Machado.
Through this relationship, CADRE Academy has been appointed as an official representative of Professor Machado's Jiu-Jitsu in Singapore, with Leon entrusted to establish John Machado Jiu-Jitsu Singapore.
This affiliation brings a recognised Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu lineage into CADRE Academy while complementing the broader training approach of Integrated Jiujitsu.
Professor John D. Machado conducting Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu instruction.
BROADER MARTIAL ARTS FOUNDATIONS
A Foundation Across Disciplines
Alongside his principal lineages, Leon's martial arts background includes senior qualifications across several disciplines, contributing to his broader understanding of striking, grappling, weapons and technical instruction.
8th Dan
Taekwondo
4th Dan
Korean Swordsmanship
2nd Dan
Arnis
SPECIALIST TRAINING & PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
Specialist Training in Self-Defence & Combatives
Alongside his martial arts development, Leon has pursued specialist training in behaviour-based self-defence, close-quarter battle, combatives and protective disciplines.
These areas are interconnected, contributing different perspectives on human behaviour, tactical decision-making and the application of physical skills under pressure.
Behaviour-Based Self-Defence — Tony Blauer's SPEAR System
Leon was certified in Tony Blauer's SPEAR System in the United States in 2007.
The SPEAR System examines instinctive human protective responses and how these can be understood and integrated into personal defence training.
His professional development within this framework includes Personal Defense Readiness, Ballistic Microfight and multiple-assailant defence.
This training contributed to his understanding of the relationship between human behaviour, protective responses and the challenges of applying learned skills during unexpected confrontations.
Close-Quarter Battle & Combatives
Leon's specialist development includes training in close-quarter battle, combatives, firearms and weapons-related disciplines.
His training and instructor qualifications encompass handgun, rifle and shotgun instruction, combat transition shooting, tactical ground fighting, weapons protection and modular blade training.
These experiences have broadened his understanding of close-range confrontation, weapon-related risks, tactical decision-making and the importance of adapting skills to the demands of different environments.
Rather than treating these disciplines as isolated techniques, Leon considers how their underlying principles, limitations and training methodologies contribute to a broader understanding of defensive performance.
Specialist Protective Training
Leon's professional development also includes executive protection and associated protective skills.
Protective training requires consideration of more than physical confrontation. It involves awareness, anticipation, judgement, positioning and responsibility for the safety of others.
This perspective complements his wider approach to self-defence education, where recognising and managing developing situations can be as important as responding physically.
THE APPROACH TO TEACHING
Finding What Makes Learning Click
After three decades of teaching, Leon recognises that knowing how to perform a skill and knowing how to help someone learn it are different abilities.
His approach begins with understanding the learner. People bring different experiences, abilities and ways of processing information into training. What works for one student may not work for another.
Sometimes, a different explanation, a question or a small adjustment is enough to help someone make progress. At other times, students need opportunities to explore a problem through movement, interaction and feedback.
Leon encourages students to pay attention not only to what works, but also to what happens when things do not go as expected. Difficulty, mistakes and uncertainty can provide valuable information when students are supported in examining and learning from them.
Rather than simply giving students answers to remember, his role is to guide their understanding, help them recognise possibilities and develop the confidence to make decisions.
For Leon, effective teaching is not measured only by what students can reproduce during a lesson, but by the understanding and adaptability they develop through training.
SELECTED QUALIFICATIONS & CREDENTIALS
A Foundation of Training & Continuing Development
Academic & Behavioural Studies
Bachelor of Applied Science
Specialist Diploma Applied Psychology
Specialist Diploma Sports & Exercise Science
Graduate Diploma Artificial Intelligence & Machine Learning
Certified Extended DISC Analyst
Martial Arts Qualifications
10th Dan — KAPAP Krav Maga - Israeli Jiujitsu
8th Dan — Taekwondo
First Degree Black Belt — Brazilian Jiu-jitsu
Black Belt — Integrated Jiujitsu—
4th Dan — Kummooyeh (Korean Swordsmanship & Archery)
2nd Dan — Arnis
Specialist Instructor Certifications
KAPAP Krav Maga Level 4 Instructor
Integrated Jiujitsu Instructor
SPEAR System Fundamentals Coach
CQB Combat Handgun Level 2 Instructor
CQB Level 2 Instructor
CRMIPT Instructor
Executive Protection Specialist
Coaching & Professional Development
National Coaching Accreditation Programme - Level 2
National Registry of Coaches
Effective Youth Coaching - NYSI
First Aid/CPR/AED
PUTTING EXPERIENCE INTO PRACTICE
Continuing the Work at CADRE Academy
As founder and head instructor of CADRE Academy in Singapore, Leon Koh brings his experience in martial arts, self-defence, combatives and education into the training environment.
His work includes Integrated Jiujitsu under Avi Nardia Academy, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu under Professor John D. Machado, and Close Distance Combat (CDC), the distinct system created by Avi Nardia for specialist combatives and defensive training.
At CADRE, this experience informs progressive self-defence training for children and adults, alongside practical personal safety education. The emphasis remains on understanding, adaptability, decision-making and learning through experience.
For Leon, CADRE Academy is not simply a place to pass on what he has learned. It is where he continues to teach, question, refine and develop his understanding alongside his students.
TRAIN FOR LIFE · PREPARE FOR REALITY.
Train For Life.
Prepare For Reality
Contact
Tel: +65 6974 5844
© 2026 CADRE Self Defense & Martial Arts Academy. All Rights Reserved.
CADRE Self Defense & Martial Arts Academy
200 Upper Thomson Road,
Thomson Imperial Court
#01-08 Singapore 574424
#019-