Revelation Martial Arts has been growing in Steinbach for years, and owner John Sawatzky, couldn't be prouder of his students, especially after two had a wonderful showing at a recent event in Winnipeg.

The beginning

"It started about 16 years ago in a small little place here in Steinbach," Sawatzky says with a smile. "We outgrew that place, so we moved it to where we are now. It's tough when you're first starting, so it was a love that I had always had for martial arts. and I just wanted to bring the knowledge I accumulated to everyone else to help share it."

That love and passion Sawatzky has for his discipline has since found many like-minded people, and he's loved building bonds in the community. "It's been amazing," he says with a grin. "To be honest, you don't even expect so many people to come through your doors as far as all walks of life, right? It doesn't matter, race, financial status, none of that matters. Everybody comes together, and it's just one big melting pot of people encouraging each other and training together. It's just absolutely amazing."

Great for all ages

At Revelation, Sawatzky says they welcome and encourage anyone of any age to come and check out what they do. "I've got kids in there, ages 3, and I think right now my oldest in class right now is 53. I myself just turned 48 here last month, and I love training.

Latest event

Recently, Revelation had a pair of students taking part in something very big. "It was a big event, ADCC is what it's called," explains Sawatzky. "They're in different provinces. They come out, the biggest one is held every two years in Vegas. It's like the Olympics of the Jiu-Jitsu grappling scene. So, they headed out to BC, and they both competed in the intermediate categories and in their respective weight divisions, and both pulled off gold. Yeah, we were super proud of what they did there for us."

It's a great thing for the two involved, and it also means a lot to the Revelation brand. "It just really solidifies that what we're doing is working, and to put yourself up against other people all over the world and do well there, it puts the stamp on it that, like I said, what we're doing is working, and we're going to continue to improve on what we're already doing."

What's coming

Some exciting things is coming up where Revelation Martial Arts will be represented. "We have two of our kickboxers going to be competing at the CFC amateur event here on November 28th in Winnipeg, and one of my guys is going to be making his MMA debut there as well. On November 15th, we're doing the match over an open grappling competition in Winnipeg as well. So yeah, we've got quite a few things going on, really exciting."

How to get in touch

Reaching out to John Sawatzky, or learning anything to do with his gym, is very easy, according to the man himself. "Go to our website Southeast Manitoba's Largest Martial Arts Dojo | Beginner Friendly. All the contact information is on there. They can call me at my phone number, 204 392 8883, and I'll answer whatever questions they have. First class is free. We encourage everybody to come down. The hardest part is just walking through the door. After that, you'll be hooked."