Manuel "Omar" Camar

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Manuel Camar began his Aikido training in 1964 when he met Benjamin Galarpe, the Father of Aikido in the Philippines. He inherited the first and oldest Aikido school in the country, the Manila Aikido Club, and became its longest running chief instructor after Galarpe decided to leave permanently for Guam in 1972. Following the schism between the Aikikai doushu, Kisshomaru Ueshiba, and the former head master, Koichi Tohei in 1971, Galarpe chose to remain loyal to Tohei and joined Shin Shin Toitsu Aikido. Camar, by then the most senior student left in Manila who did not follow after his teacher's footsteps, became the father of the newly orphaned Manila Aikido Club.Image:C:180px-Camar oval sepia.jpeg

His Aikido training helped him land a number of stunt and acting roles in Philippine cinema. Camar had played the villain in the 1960s movies of well-known Filipino actors like Eddie Rodriguez ("Kingpin"), Roberto Gonzales ("Walang Hari sa Akin"-"I Have No King"), Tony Ferrer ("Kung-fu Master"), Dante Rivero ("Tanikalang Dugo"-"Chain of Blood"), Comedian Dolphy ("Sato Wichy"), Ramon Revilla and Eddie Garcia ("Supremo"), Jun Aristorenas ("Elias, Basilio at Sisa," -Rajah Soliman awardee) and Poe ("Isla Puting Bato" - "Whitestone Island"). The first international film he made was with Chuck Norris in "Missing In Action" in the 1980s, and the Japanese film "Golden Triangle," with renowned martial artist Shoji Karada. He became an actor when Rodriguez offered him the role of a villain in his movie "Kingpin" and adopted the screen name "Omar Camar". He was 27 then.

Camar also served as martial arts instructor to the Philippine Presidential Security Guard of the late Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos and for the Philippine National Police Academy in Silang, Cavite. Camar teaches at the "Manila Aikido Club" later named "Manila Aikikai" and now named Philippine Aikikai where he serves as the longest chief instructor. Camar is credited for training many of the most senior Aikido instructors in the Philippines under the Aikikai.