Instructors:

Coach V - 8th Degree

Coach V is the Head Instructor of Kaizen Karate located in the Washington, DC area.

“Coach V” has 37 years of experience in the martial arts, having spent the majority of his life committed to the trade. He began his journey with karate at five years old and earned his first black belt in non-traditional Tang Soo Do in 1998 through Hill's Hitters Karate and Master Instructor Dr. Phillip Hill. Coach V went on to earn his business degree at the Robert H. Smith School of Business at the University of Maryland in College Park. Coach V then continued his training in Kenpo under 8th degree black belt Sifu Greg Payne who also holds a 5th degree black belt in Shotokan as well as many other black belts in other arts including Goju ryu & Judo.  In 2014, Coach V earned his second black belt in IKCA Chinese Kenpo under Sifu Greg Payne and the supervision of 10th degree black belt Senior Grandmaster Chuck Sullivan and 10th degree black belt Grandmaster Vic Leroux.  In 2017, Coach V was promoted to 6th degree black belt in IKCA Kenpo by 10th degree black belt Senior Grandmaster Chuck Sullivan who is a direct student of Senior Grand Master Ed Parker.  In 2024, Coach V was promoted to 8th degree black belt in IKCA Chinese Kenpo by 10th degree black belt Senior Grandmaster Chuck Sullivan. Additionally, Coach V holds the rank of Nikyu (2nd degree brown belt) in Budoshin JuJitsu under 7th degree black belt Sensei David Boesel who is the President & Chairman of the American JuJitsu Association. Coach V also studied Aikido at the ASU headquarters overseen by Saotome Sensei, Shihan who is one of the original students of Aikido's founder Morihei Ueshiba (O Sensei).  In his free time he enjoys spending time with his wife and children as well as running local long distance races which most recently included the Cherry Blossom 10 miler, Rock 'n' Roll 1/2 Marathon,  & Marine Corp Marathon in Washington, DC.

Coach David - 6th Degree

Inspired by the original hit movie 'The Karate Kid', Coach David began his martial arts journey in 1988. He earned his first blackbelt in Tae Kwon Do in 1993 under the supervision of 9th degree Master Jae Kim. Coach David earned his second blackbelt in Tang Soo Do from Kaizen Karate under the supervision of 7th degree blackbelt Coach Viran Ranasinghe (Coach V). Coach David earned his third blackbelt in IKCA Chinese Kenpo under Coach V and the supervision of 10th degree blackbelt Senior Grandmaster Chuck Sullivan, a direct student of Senior Grand Master Edmund K. Parker. Coach David currently holds a 1st degree blackbelt in Tae Kwon Do, a 6th degree blackbelt in non traditional Tang Soo Do, and a 6th degree blackbelt in Chinese Kenpo where he is also an IKCA Certified Instructor. Coach David has 2 children, both of which are also blackbelts. An accomplished triathlete, Coach David has competed in numerous races of all distances, and is a 3-time Ironman triathlon finisher. A Software Engineer at NASA, Coach David also enjoys competing in duplicate bridge, and is a skilled home barista.