Alex Butcher

 Author Alex Butcher's judo experience spans a period of 40 years. Much of this time was spent coaching judo at schools, refereeing and judging adult competitions. Alex trained the South African judo teams of 1998 and 1999, as well as the gold medal-winning national kata team of 1999. A 6th-dan South African judo-ka, he was also awarded sandan (3rd-dan) status by Kokodan (the headquarters of the International Judo Institute in Japan) in 1980, and was the first foreign associate member of the official British Schools Judo Association. Consultant Harry Cook has been training in the martial arts for 35 years, and his wide range of experience includes Japanese, Chinese and Thai martial arts. He is a 4th-dan karate-ka, is Chief Instructor of the Seijinkai Karate-do Association, and holds an instructor's certificate in Muay Thai. He is widely published as an author of books and articles on martial arts, and lives in South Africa.