Instructors

All of our instructors have well over a decades worth of experience, are First Aid certified, have completed a Working with Children Check and hold various nationally and internationally recognised coaching accreditations

Ernest Lapornik

Gracie Jiu Jitsu 1st Degree Black Belt

Head Instructor - Hunter Valley Jiu Jitsu
 

Ernest is the head instructor at Hunter Valley Jiu Jitsu. He commenced training under Luke Beston in early 2007 and was promoted to Black Belt in May 2021.

Ernest had a successful competitive career winning medals at both State and National level. He is still occasionally competing in competitions in NSW but is focused on the development of successful students at Hunter Valley Jiu Jitsu

Prior to training Gracie Jiu Jitsu, Ernest was already a highly proficient martial artist with ranks in Kendo and Hapkido and he is one of a very small number of internationally recognised coaches in the Russian grappling art of SAMBO by the international SAMBO Federation (FIAS) in Australia

• Black Belt - Gracie Jiu Jitsu under Prof. Luke Beston

• Black Belt - Hapkido

• Shodan - Kendo

• Certified Instructor - Lamb Baton Method under Guro Ray Floro

• Level 1 SAMBO Coach - FIAS

• Senior First Aid (St John Ambulance)

• Member of Australian Federation of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu (AFBJJ)