Derek Ireland

Derek was born in Brighton England in 1949 and during his teen years he excelled in sports and music. Later on in his twenties he continued training and started working as a punk-rock group manager. It was not until his thirties in the 70’s that he got introduced into Yoga. He then studied for six years in the Sivananda ashram in the Bahamas by Robert Moses where he had his first encounter with the method of Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga. He later found himself practising in New York with Leslie Kaminoff, Norman Allen and Tridham Das, the team of the first ever Ashtanga yoga teachers in the West.
In the middle of 80’s he visited Mysore and studied with his guru Sri. K. Pattabhi jois for several years. He established the first Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga center in Europe in the south of Crete – Greece in 1989 and Goa India where he would train some of today’s most famous Ashtanga Yoga teachers. At the same time he would travel around Europe offering workshops and seminars while he established a particular teaching method. He set up the foundation of contemporary yoga teaching based on verbal adjustments, a method that was welcome and well integrated in the Western society. was the first one to give TTC on Ashtanga method in Goa (Practice Place Goa) and he was the co-founder of the established first Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga center in Europe, The Practice Place, in the south of Crete in 1989 where he would train some of today’s most famous. Moreover he defined the standards of the professional yoga teacher by setting a perfect example for all his students who are currently running schools all around the world.
Derek’ charismatic presence is still and inspiration so much for yoga teachers as well as practitioners all over the world who are proud to be part of the lineage of Sri K. Pattabhi Jois.