User:Alexander Antonopoulos/Philip Gelinas

Philip Gelinas, a.k.a. "Sled Dog," (born in 1952) is a Canadian martial arts practitioner.

Gelinas was inducted into the Canadian Black Belt Hall of Fame in 2013 for his pioneering activities in diverse martial arts and numerous emerging combat systems.

He is Champion of the Pekiti Tirsia Kali International Grand Championship in Nashville, Tennessee in 1989, and Mandala Tuhon (12 Hagdan) in [Pekiti Tirsia Kali]] under Leo T. Gage. He is also the Canadian National Director of the Pekiti Tirsia Kali Global Organization.

One of the Original Dog Brothers and a 1st Tier Fighter in Dog Brothers Martial Arts, he has appeared in the first of the "Real Contact Stick Fighting" video series. Gelinas sits on the Council of Elders of the Dog Brothers Martial Arts.

Gelinas is also Grandmaster (9th degree black belt) in the Emperado Method of Kajukenbo and is credited with creating an accurate Kajukenbo Family Tree of worldwide scope.

Gelinas sits on the Board of Advisers to the Kajukenbo Self Defence Institute (KSDI) and is the KSDI Director for Canada.

Gelinas has been awarded Full Instructorship in Filipino Martial Arts and Jeet Kune Do under Guro Dan Inosanto and is credited as one of the founders of the Brazilian Top Team Canada network of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Academies in Canada.

Gelinas lives in Montreal, Quebec. He founded and runs the Gelinas Academy of Mixed Martial Arts (GAMMA), also known as the Cultural Martial Arts Academy.

Martial Arts Training and Experience
Gelinas began his training in a style of karate known as Chito Ryu at the age of 14. Since then he has trained in many styles including Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, Kali, Muay Thai, Judo, Kempo, Kajukenbo, Jun Fan-Jeet kune do, Silat, and Capoeira. He obtained black belts in Kempo (1973) and Kajukenbo (1975). In the 1980s he received a Muay Thai instructor credential under Thom Harinck after meeting him in 1985.

Dog Brothers & Kali
Gelinas began training in Kali in the early 80's and had won the International Kali Grand Prix by 1988. He claims to be inspired when his Kajukenbo teacher upon deciding to no longer teach told his class "watch out for the old men with the sticks." This led Gelinas to immediately look out for old men with sticks.

He has trained Pekiti Tirsia Kali with Grand Tuhon Leo T. Gaje, the sole guardian of the system, and was promoted to Mandala-Tuhon by Gaje himself. Now the second highest ranked person in this system, he has also studied at the Inosanto Academy with Dan Inosanto, where he practiced the Lacoste-Inosanto system, eventually becoming a full instructor in this system as well.

Philip Gelinas is one of the founding Dog Brothers, a group of Kali practitioners who gained fame for their aggressive no holds barred sparring methods and usage of little or no protective equipment. He earned the name Sled Dog in reference to Sled Dog racing and his Canadian heritage.

Kajukenbo
Gelinas is an 8th degree black belt in the Emperado Method of Kajukenbo, a martial art derived from Karate, judo, jujutsu, kenpo, and boxing. He received his promotion from Sijo Adriano Directo Emperado, one of the original creators of the art, in 2001. He is now a 9th degree Blackbelt (Grandmaster) and is on the board of advisors of kajukenbo. He also holds a 4th degree black belt in the Chu'an Fa Method of Kajukenbo. He is credited for constructing an accurate family tree of the Kajukenbo system.

Brazilian Top Team Canada
When BTT Black belt Fabio Holanda moved to Montreal in 2003 he began training with Gelinas. Holanda and Gelinas quickly set up a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Academy affiliated with Brazilian Top Team, Holanda's school in his native Brazil. Since then Brazilian Top Team Canada has branched out to a small network of schools across Canada and has become home to some of Canada's most prominent professional mixed martial artists. Gelinas himself holds a brown belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu.