MEET OUR INSTRUCTORS
Kamal Shalorus, also known as “The Prince of Persia”, Kamal has fought the absolute best in the world in the WEC, UFC, and ONE FC promotions. Kamal was born on the border of Iran and Azerbaijan in a small village consisting of farmers and shepherds. A natural athlete, Kamal began training at an early age where he excelled at amateur Wrestling, and from there his career was born. He began traveling internationally for wrestling and won two world championships before representing the United Kingdom in the Olympic Trials. Kamal eventually made his way to Austin, Texas, where he began fighting as a Mixed Martial Artist. With less than 7 Fights, Kamal fought seasoned veterans Bart Palaszewski and Jaimie Varner, before entering the UFC. Kamal’s resume includes Raphael Dos Anjos (the former UFC lightweight champion), Jim Miller (the most UFC wins in the lightweight division), and Khabib Nurmagomedov (the UFC lightweight top contender). Kamal can now be find competing for ONE Fighting Championships or teaching his students at District Martial Arts.
Scott Dance has been training in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu for more than 12 years and is one of the most talented Black Belts in the area. By way of Kentucky, Scott moved to the Washington D.C. Area after college where he began to teach and train at an even higher level. Scott teaches Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and no-gi submission grappling, and is constantly improving on and off the mat. Scott has won and competed in multiple Brazilian Jiu Jitsu competitions, including competing in the Finals of the Metamoris Challenger series, IBJFF and UAEJJF regional, National and World championships. Look for Scott’s advanced Brazilian Jiu Jitsu teachings (and protect your neck!) every day of the week.
Sam Shawa started his martial arts training at the tender age of 8 years old. His passion for the art blossomed, as he pursued training in the fields of Taekwondo, Kajukenbo, Boxing, Aikido, Krav Maga and Brazilian Jiu-jitsu (BJJ). He has participated in multiple BJJ competitions around the country. The last twelve (12) years, he has dedicated to honing his skills in BJJ under the tutelage of Rodrigo Medeiros, who promoted him to a black belt. He is well known for his in-depth understanding of martial arts, easy going nature and powerful grips. Sam specializes in Brazilian Jiu-jitsu and no-gi submission grappling.
Charles DiGisco has been training in all disciplines of Mixed Martial Arts for nearly 9 years. By way of New Jersey, Charles moved to Washington D.C. and attended American University, after which he stayed and worked for the Department of Defense as a Consultant. Charles has competed in both amateur Mixed Martial Arts and Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. He can also be seen as a color commentator on UFC Fight Pass as well as the local DC promotion Cagezilla. When not on the mat, Charles can be heard talking about all things fighting with Steven Muehlhausen on their podcast, “The Fight Junkies” available on ITunes.
Another New Jersey native, Mark Cirello is a former NCAA Division 1 wrestler who trains in all areas of Mixed Martial Arts. Mark attended Blair Academy in NJ, one of the most elite prep schools for wrestling in the country, before moving to American University where he competed for four years in three different weight classes. A true renaissance man, Mark is also an accomplished artist, specializing in surrealist-realist paintings. When not on the mat teaching or training, Mark can be found in front of his easel painting his next piece! Cirelloart.com
Richard Dittler has been studying Krav Maga since 2006 and teaching since 2009. He was certified as a Krav Maga Global instructor by KMG Founder Eyal Yanilov, and has trained with senior Krav Maga experts including Zeev Cohen, Amnon Darsa and Ilya Dunsky. Richard has completed speciality instructor courses on self defense for women, kids, transport, third-party protection and combat mindset. Richard is a certified Personal Defence Readiness instructor with Blauer Tactical Systems, and has trained with founder Tony Blauer. Richard has a background in Goju-ryu karate and judo. Richard is from Australia, but has also trained in the USA , Japan and the Middle East. He is a Royal Australian Navy veteran and has worked in Afghanistan, Iraq and East Timor. Richard’s classes incorporate elements of self defence tactics, mental and physical skills and combatives.
Ronit (Roni) Zelivinski found yoga at the age of fourteen and has been hooked ever since. Yoga is her passion, her best friend, her healer and her muse. Roni sees yoga as way to begin again, with forgiveness and gratitude for who we are and where we are going. Roni trained with Inner Power Yoga from 2011-2012 and has been teaching Vinyasa yoga for six years across the DMV. She is currently studying to become a Certified Nurse Midwife at The George Washington University. Roni’s classes are suitable for any level yogi practitioner.
Roni is excited to be a part of the District Martial Arts team and to offer yoga as both a complement and enhancement to the rigor of martial arts training.
Come join her on the mat!
Zurriane Bennett has been training in the martial arts and combative sciences for over 40 years. He holds black belts in San Yama Bushi Jujutsu, Combat Jujutsu, Kumite Ryu Jujitsu, American Goju Karate, and Shotokan Karate. He holds ranking in Judo and Japanese sword. He is trained in and teaches, Personal Self-defense, Karate, Jujutsu, Law enforcement defensive tactics, Rape Aggression Defense for Women basic and advance, and Resisting Aggression Defense for children.
He is the creator of the Positive Self Defense (PSD) for men, women and teens program. PSD is a system that focuses on being proactive and not just reactive. He is also the creator of San Yama Bushi, and Combination Goju system.
He has written and published 4 books:
· Positive Self Defense for Men
· Positive Self Defense for Women
· Positive Self Defense for Motorcycle Riders
· Positive Self Defense for Entrepreneurs – Not what you think
Zurriane is a speaker, presenter, and trainer. A retired U.S. Marine Corps, Chief Warrant Officer Corps with over 22 years of service. In the USMC he worked as an Emergency Services and Expeditionary Airfield officer. A former law enforcement officer with New York City and Northern Virginia. He worked as a bouncer in Alexandra and has had the honor of training in the United States, Korea, Norway, and mainland Japan.
TESTIMONIALS
District Martial Arts has an amazing group of people who consistently train together, are great martial artists and care about the quality of instruction, training and taking their students through the martial arts journey. I recommend this school if you want to train REAL self-defense Brazilian jiu-jitsu!
I love coming to open mat here on Saturdays. I am new to jiu jitsu and they have been extremely welcoming. Great community. Great people.
Excellent instructors. Cater to every students’ needs. Big on safety and warm-ups, decreasing risk of injury. This place is perfect if you want to do full-contact fighting, or just train for weight-loss and endurance. Definitely the best place around.
I visited DMA for my first introductory class. I have experience with grappling martial arts, but this was a muay thai class. The environment there is awesome. Everyone is serious about learning and pushing themselves, but nobody takes themselves too seriously to enjoy each other.
I came into District Martial Arts not knowing a thing about boxing! Not only was I met by friendly faces, but the boxing coaches made me feel extremely welcomed. In just a few weeks my self defense skills improved, I found major stress relief in going to my weekly classes, and my self confidence excitingly increased! If you want to feel like a badass woman, DMA is the place for you!