Kyoshi Marco Ovalle was born in NYC in 1970 and raised in Forest Hills NY.  He graduated from Forest Hills High School in 1987 and went on to earn his B.A.in marketing at York College and did his graduated work in Instructional Technology at NYIT. 

Kyoshi love for the martial arts started when he was a boy growing up in Forest Hills NY.  He took his first karate class at the Forest Hills Rec Center back in 1983; however it wasn’t until he graduated York College where he played 4 years of NCAA tennis and basketball that he started his official training in full contact bare knuckle karate and kickboxing in 1997.  Kyoshi trained under Kancho Henri Oh where he studied the art of Kyokushin kaikan and with Sensei Denis Murphy at the NY Karate Kickboxing and Athletic Club for kickboxing.  In 2011 Sensei Marco was promoted to 5th degree black belt in Chinese Goju by Martial Legend Shidoshi Ron Van Clief , the Black Dragon.  Kyoshi has competed and championed many Bare Knuckle Full Contact Knock Down Karate Tournaments such and the Ultimate Test, Kyokushin US Open, and Mas Oyma Gold Cup in Canada.  Kyoshi Marco has also trained in Boxing and Judo.

In March of 2010 Kyoshi Marco and Sensei Roberto Beltran opened East West MMA in Selden NY located on Long Island.   Kyoshi is dedicated to build a strong community one black belt at a time by developing students’ with strong healthy bodies and the ability to defend themselves and loved ones.  He empowers his students with important values including courtesy, respect, patience, self-esteem, positive attitude, and indomitable spirit.  He is committed to constantly improving his service to his students and community by continual education in the martial arts.