Having lived and travelled extensively in the Philippines, studying under many different instructors of A/E/K and also Kung Fu styles, he has developed a comprehensive knowledge of the Filipino Martial Arts.
He is now an instructor of various different Martial Arts styles and continues to live in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
John Russell was born in New South Wales, Australia. He began his Martial Arts training in 1978.
For 10 years he studied Tae Kwon Do, Hap Ki Do, several styles of Kung Fu, as well as a number of various styles of Arnis/Escrima/Kali (A/E/K), gaining a reputation both as a student and teacher. He commenced his Balintawak training under the direction of Henry Jayme in 1988.
In 1989 he travelled to the Philippines and trained with such notables as Grandmaster Ciriaco Cañete of the Doce Pares learning Escrido and later with Grandmaster Victor Cagadas learning his style of Escrima.