Athens Pilates Symposium Presenters

He received his teaching credentials (1978) and Bachelor of Education degree in Israel at the prestigious Wingate Institute of Physical Education, where he was later invited to join the teaching faculty and lectured for three years. Rael completed his Master of Arts degree in Dance at the University of Surrey, England (1986).

Incorporating yoga, dance, athletics, academic knowledge, and more than 25 years of teaching experience, Rael founded Body Arts and Science International Certification (BASIC). The beginnings of the organization were in Australia in 1989, being one of the first curriculum based Pilates teacher training programs in the world. BASIC is recognized as a contemporary and cutting edge approach to the works of Joseph Pilates, and is an amalgamation of the pure form of Pilates and current scientific knowledge. In 1991 he established On Center Conditioning, a Pilates studio in Southern California, which, has helped, set the standard in the industry since its inception and has served as the international headquarters for BASIC.

Rael has worked extensively on five continents in the fields of dance and Pilates and has received international recognition from the medical, dance and athletic communities, as well as from his peers and colleagues. He was a featured presenter at the International Association of Dance Medicine and Science in Tel Aviv, Israel (1995) and at the University of California, Irvine (1996). Rael has also published several articles and been featured in numerous publications dedicated to health and fitness. Rael served on the Board of the Pilates Method Alliance, a nonprofit organization of professionals dedicated to unity, professionalism and to advocating educational standards in the Pilates community. He continues to support the organization serving as a committee chairperson.

With a rich background as a professional dancer, teacher and master of the Pilates method, Rael brings to his teaching unparalleled expertise combined with a passion for his work, which he shares generously with all. Rael combines an extremely busy international teaching schedule with his wife Adelle and his son Elan whom he regards as undoubtedly his greatest achievement.

Elizabeth developed the Pilates Allegro program, Pilates Mat with Roller, Ring & Rotator Discs, Reebok Core Pilates, and Kinesis Flow for TechnoGym. Co-founder and former co-owner of Polestar Education, Elizabeth now teaches internationally as a Balanced Body University Master Educator. She created PilatesPerformance, a unique dance form that takes Pilates far beyond fitness, rehabilitation, and sports-specific conditioning to explore expressive possibilities of body-mind-spirit. Elizabeth’s DVDs and podcasts are available on www.pilates.comm

Tracey’s passion for healthy living continues to inspire people around the world, including mothers and individuals with a sincere interest in fitness and sound nutrition. You can see Tracey regularly on KGTV 10 News San Diego as their regular fitness expert and a new health and fitness TV show Perfectly You. Her work as the fitness expert for the Hot Moms Club, along with her advice about exercise in the Hot Moms Club Handbook, is exactly the sort of practical information the public wants. Tracey even reaches over 19 million viewers who watch her workouts on Exercise TV and her suggestions about prenatal fitness appears on BabyCenter.com as their prenatal exercise expert. Tracey also has partnered with iamplify.com the leader in downlaodable workouts and has a line of audio cardio workouts for the bike and eleptical.

Vivi is the director of the Yoga & Pilates program at NYSY Studios in Athens. Before opening this center in 2004 with her husband Eraj Shakib, they used to live and work in San Francisco, California.

Vivi left Greece at an early age to follow a multi-disciplinary education that included a Bachelor’s degree in Aeronautical Engineering, an A.A. in Business, and a Master’s degree in Theater Arts. Later she attended courses on Asian Healing Arts & Massage, as well as several teacher training programs for Yoga and Pilates.

With great enthusiasm and love for people, culture, and spiritual upliftment, Vivi always worked to create plattforms for meetings of teachers and students, and artists with audiences. She founded San Jose’s first ethnic dance school in the 80s, and worked for nearly 20 years as a director and producer of films, documentaries, and plays. Some of her films and political documentaries were screeend all over the world and won awards. She also produced large shows, exhibitions, and business conferences.

The heavy demands of her producing career brought her to exhaustion many times, but yoga and the practice of Zen always saved her. That’is why she finally decided to teach yoga and pilates full-time, and to create a center that would offer all these great healing practices to the people in Greece.

Her training in Pilates includes studies with the Physical Mind Institute, Ellie Herman Pilates, and BASI. Wanting to share the benefits of Pilates education with many people in Greece and abroad she organized this Pilates Symposium and is looking forward to seeing great teachers and practitioners coming together to cultivate knowledge, experience, and friendship. She hopes that many people will feel the positive waves from this special gathering.