Wellsprings Instructors
Mark Allcock
Mark started training Aikido in 1994, under the direction of Paul McGlone of Poole Aikido Dorset who were part of Traditional Iwama Aikido Europe (TIAE) and was awarded his shodan (1st dan blackbelt) in January 2003. He was awarded Nidan in 2007.
In 2014, Mark began to follow the teachings of Lewis Bernaldo de Quiros. In 2018 Traditional Aikido Europe (TAE) was formed and Wellsprings was one of the original members. He attends numerous TAE weekend seminars and summer schools each year with Sensei de Quirós.
Mark graded Sandan in 2022 under Lewis Bernaldo de Quiros.
He was in Japan in 2024 and visited the Hombu Dojo in Tokoyo and also the Iwama dojo. He is also a BWY qualified yoga teacher.
Mark is a British Aikido Board (BAB) Coaching Level 1 certified and insured instructor.
Elisa Barcellos
Elisa started training in 1992 as a junior with TIAE (led by Tony Sargeant and Paul McGlone). She is pictured on uchi deshi in Iwama and Kefalonia and was awarded Shodan in 2007.
She has assisted Mark on an ad hoc basis at Wellsprings since the club started, but joined TAE fully after the pandemic and was awarded Nidan by Lewis in 2023.
Elisa is a British Aikido Board (BAB) Coaching Level 1 certified and insured instructor.
Marco Scata
Marco started training in Takemusu Aikido in the early 2000’s (he can’t remember the year) in London, UK, under the guidance of Andrew Hathaway Sensei.
In 2009 Marco moved to Sydney, Australia, where he became a direct student of Saburo Takayasu Shihan (a direct student of Morihiro Saito sensei) and obtained shodan grade. In 2014, Marco moved back to the UK and found a new training home at the Wellsprings dojo in sunny Dorset, where he also became one of the instructors.
Aside from Aikido, Marco is also training in “old school” Yang style Taiji and Shotokan Karate, and has a keen interest in the overlaps of martial principles and body principles across these disciplines. When Marco leads the class, you can often hear him talking about “creating opportunities”, “sac of potatoes” and “pinky power”. Do you want to know what that’s about? Come training and find out!
Marco is a British Aikido Board (BAB) Coaching Level 1 certified and insured instructor.
Jan Dover (ne Hardy)
Jan Dover (ne Hardy).
Jan started training at the age of 32 in June 1988 with Poole Aikido Club under Paul McGlone (TAIR GB) and was awarded Shodan in April 1993. In Oct 1994 she was awarded an Advanced Weapons Scroll Level one by Saito Sensei at the NEC arena Seminar in Birmingham. She then took her Nidan in Oct 1995. Seven years later in 2002 she stopped training due to other commitments (studying for FdA in Garden Design) and lifestyle changes.
Fast forward to May 2023 when a barbecue which Mark Allcock was also at, sparked off a conversation about her revisiting Aikido training. He re-lit the Aikido spark in her and was a case of karma -right time, right place. So she started training again in August 2023 at the senior age of 67.
Although a huge, but throughly enjoyable learning curve coming back to training after 21 years absence, she found it very fulfilling that the fundementals and enthusiasm for Aikido training do live on within, even if if the ageing process has changed her both physically and mentally along the way. This has consolidated in her the view that Aikido is suitable for a wide range of ages and abilities.
It has been a great gift to her to be able to train again and has found the Wellsprings teaching and class environment a very enjoyable, encouraging and supportive place for students of all levels.
Her previous shodan and nidan grades have now been ratified by Lewis Benaldo de Quiros to Aikikai certifications over the past 2 years.
Jan is a British Aikido Board (BAB) Coaching Level 1 certified and insured instructor.
