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Parkour () is an athletic
training Training is teaching, or developing in oneself or others, any skills and knowledge or fitness that relate to specific useful competencies. Training has specific goals of improving one's capability, capacity, productivity and performance. I ...
discipline or sport in which practitioners (called ''traceurs'') attempt to get from one point to another in the fastest and most efficient way possible, without assisting equipment and often while performing feats of
acrobatics Acrobatics () is the performance of human feats of balance (ability), balance, agility, and motor coordination. Acrobatic skills are used in performing arts, sports, sporting events, and martial arts. Extensive use of acrobatic skills are most ...
. With roots in military
obstacle course An obstacle course is a series of challenging physical obstacles an individual, team or animal must navigate, usually while being timed. Obstacle courses can include running, climbing, jumping, crawling, swimming, and balancing elements with the ...
training and
martial arts Martial arts are codified systems and traditions of combat practiced for a number of reasons such as self-defence; military and law enforcement applications; combat sport, competition; physical, mental, and spiritual development; entertainment; ...
, parkour includes
flipping In finance, flipping is purchasing an asset to quickly resell (or "flip") it for profit. Within the real estate industry, the term is used by investors to describe the process of buying, rehabbing, and selling properties for profit. In 2017, 207, ...
,
running Running is a method of terrestrial locomotion by which humans and other animals move quickly on foot. Running is a gait with an aerial phase in which all feet are above the ground (though there are exceptions). This is in contrast to walkin ...
,
climbing Climbing is the activity of using one's hands, feet, or other parts of the body to ascend a steep topographical object that can range from the world's tallest mountains (e.g. the eight thousanders) to small boulders. Climbing is done for locom ...
, swinging,
vaulting In architecture, a vault (French ''voûte'', from Italian ''volta'') is a self-supporting arched form, usually of stone or brick, serving to cover a space with a ceiling or roof. As in building an arch, a temporary support is needed while ring ...
,
jumping Jumping or leaping is a form of locomotion or movement in which an organism or non-living (e.g., robotic) mechanical system propels itself through the air along a ballistic trajectory. Jumping can be distinguished from running, galloping and ...
,
plyometrics Plyometrics, also known as jump training or plyos, are exercises in which muscles exert maximum force in short intervals of time, with the goal of increasing power (speed-strength). This training focuses on learning to move from a muscle exten ...
,
rolling Rolling is a Motion (physics)#Types of motion, type of motion that combines rotation (commonly, of an Axial symmetry, axially symmetric object) and Translation (geometry), translation of that object with respect to a surface (either one or the ot ...
, and quadrupedal movement—whatever is suitable for a given situation. Parkour is an activity that can be practiced alone or with others, and is usually carried out in
urban Urban means "related to a city". In that sense, the term may refer to: * Urban area, geographical area distinct from rural areas * Urban culture, the culture of towns and cities Urban may also refer to: General * Urban (name), a list of people ...
spaces, though it can be done anywhere. It involves seeing one's environment in a new way, and envisioning the potential for navigating it by movement around, across, through, over and under its features. Historically,
flips Flip, FLIP, or flips may refer to: People * Flip (nickname), a list of people * Lil' Flip (born 1981), American rapper * Flip Simmons, Australian actor and musician * Flip Wilson, American comedian Arts and entertainment Fictional characters * ...
and other
acrobatic Acrobatics () is the performance of human feats of balance, agility, and motor coordination. Acrobatic skills are used in performing arts, sporting events, and martial arts. Extensive use of acrobatic skills are most often performed in acro ...
movements were not considered essential to the discipline of parkour, and the term
freerunning Freerunning is an athletic and acrobatic discipline incorporating an aesthetic element, and can be considered either a sport or a performance art, or both. Freerunning is similar to parkour, from which it is derived, but emphasizes artistry over ...
was applied to parkour-like movement that emphasized artistry rather than efficiency. However, as the parkour culture evolved, its distinction from freerunning became increasingly blurred. Parkour athletes now broadly agree that flips are unambiguously part of parkour. Parkour was established by
David Belle David Nicolas Williams Belle (born 29 April 1973) is a French actor, film choreographer and stunt coordinator. He is deemed the founder and leading pioneer of the physical discipline parkour, coining it based on his training and the teachings fro ...
in the 1980s, and it was initially called ; however the name "le parcours" had already been given to the activity by 1989. The discipline was popularised in the 1990s and 2000s through films, documentaries, video games, and advertisements. Similar techniques were known from French military obstacle courses,
Angel An angel is a spiritual (without a physical body), heavenly, or supernatural being, usually humanoid with bird-like wings, often depicted as a messenger or intermediary between God (the transcendent) and humanity (the profane) in variou ...
, pp. 17–20
and some authors see influence from
Hong Kong cinema The cinema of Hong Kong ( zh, t=香港電影) is one of the three major threads in the history of Chinese-language cinema, alongside the cinema of China and the cinema of Taiwan. As a former Crown colony, Hong Kong had a greater degree of ar ...
and Asian martial arts in Parkour.


Etymology

The word ''parkour'' derives from (
Obstacle course An obstacle course is a series of challenging physical obstacles an individual, team or animal must navigate, usually while being timed. Obstacle courses can include running, climbing, jumping, crawling, swimming, and balancing elements with the ...
), the classic obstacle course method of military training proposed by
Georges Hébert Georges Hébert (; 27 April 1875 – 2 August 1957) was a pioneering physical educator in the French military who developed a system of physical education and training known as "la méthode naturelle" ("Natural Method") and a more wide trainin ...
. Raymond Belle used the term "" to encompass all of his training including climbing, jumping, running, balancing, and the other methods he undertook in his personal athletic advancement. Belle, pp. 31–70 His son, David, further developed his father's methods and achieved success as a stuntman, and one day on a film set showed his 'Speed Air Man' video to
Hubert Koundé Hubert Koundé (born December 30, 1970) is a French actor and film director. He is best known for his role as Hubert in the film written and directed by Mathieu Kassovitz. Early life Koundé was born in France in 1970. He is of Beninese origin ...
. Koundé suggested he change the "c" of "" to a "k" because it was stronger and more dynamic, and to remove the silent "s" for the same reason, forming "''parkour''".
Angel An angel is a spiritual (without a physical body), heavenly, or supernatural being, usually humanoid with bird-like wings, often depicted as a messenger or intermediary between God (the transcendent) and humanity (the profane) in variou ...
, p. 37.
According to Sebastien Foucan, the activity had already been given the name "le parcours" by the year 1989. A practitioner of parkour is called a ''traceur'', with the feminine form being ''traceuse'' or simply a "Parkourist". They are
nouns In grammar, a noun is a word that represents a concrete or abstract thing, like living creatures, places, actions, qualities, states of existence, and ideas. A noun may serve as an object or subject within a phrase, clause, or sentence.Example n ...
derived from the French verb '' tracer'', which normally means "to trace", as in "tracing a path", in reference to drawing. The verb used familiarly means: "to hurry up". The term ''traceur'' was originally the name of a parkour group headed by David Belle which included
Sébastien Foucan Sébastien Foucan (born 27 May 1974) is a French freerunner. He is the founder of freerunning and considered an early developer of parkour. Known for his views on the philosophy of parkour and freerunning, Foucan stresses the need for trainin ...
and Stéphane Vigroux. A ''jam'' refers to a meeting of traceurs, involving training lasting anywhere from hours to several days, often with people from different cities. The first parkour jam was organised in July 2002 by Romain Drouet, with a dozen people including
Sébastien Foucan Sébastien Foucan (born 27 May 1974) is a French freerunner. He is the founder of freerunning and considered an early developer of parkour. Known for his views on the philosophy of parkour and freerunning, Foucan stresses the need for trainin ...
and Stéphane Vigroux.


History


Origins

The practice of similar techniques existed in French military obstacle courses and
Hong Kong cinema The cinema of Hong Kong ( zh, t=香港電影) is one of the three major threads in the history of Chinese-language cinema, alongside the cinema of China and the cinema of Taiwan. As a former Crown colony, Hong Kong had a greater degree of ar ...
. A similar discipline in
Chinese culture Chinese culture () is one of the Cradle of civilization#Ancient China, world's earliest cultures, said to originate five thousand years ago. The culture prevails across a large geographical region in East Asia called the Sinosphere as a whole ...
is ''
qinggong Qinggong () is a training technique for jumping off vertical surfaces from the Chinese martial arts. One way of training is to run up a slightly inclined ramp, gradually increasing the steepness of the incline until it is vertical. Etymology Th ...
'', a
Chinese martial arts Chinese martial arts, commonly referred to with umbrella terms Kung fu (term), kung fu (; ), kuoshu () or wushu (sport), wushu (), are Styles of Chinese martial arts, multiple fighting styles that have developed over the centuries in Greater Ch ...
training technique, most famously practiced by
Jackie Chan Fang Shilong (born Chan Kong-sang; 7 April 1954), known professionally as Jackie Chan,; is a Hong Kong actor and filmmaker, known for his slapstick, acrobatic fighting style, comic timing, and innovative stunts, which he typically perf ...
.


Georges Hébert

In Western Europe, a forerunner of parkour was developed by French naval officer
Georges Hébert Georges Hébert (; 27 April 1875 – 2 August 1957) was a pioneering physical educator in the French military who developed a system of physical education and training known as "la méthode naturelle" ("Natural Method") and a more wide trainin ...
, who before
World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...
promoted athletic skill based on the models of indigenous tribes he had met in Africa. He noted, "their bodies were splendid, flexible, nimble, skillful, enduring, and resistant but yet they had no other tutor in gymnastics but their lives in nature." His rescue efforts during the 1902 eruption of
Mount Pelée Mount Pelée or Mont Pelée ( ; , ; ), meaning "bald mountain" or "peeled mountain" in French, is an active volcano at the northern end of Martinique, an island and French overseas department in the Lesser Antilles Volcanic Arc of the Caribbean ...
on
Saint-Pierre, Martinique Saint-Pierre (, ; ; Martinican Creole: ) is a town and commune of France's Caribbean overseas department of Martinique, founded in 1635 by Pierre Belain d'Esnambuc. Before the total destruction of Saint-Pierre by a volcanic eruption in 1902, it ...
reinforced his belief that athletic skill must be combined with courage and altruism. Hébert became a physical education tutor at the college of
Reims Reims ( ; ; also spelled Rheims in English) is the most populous city in the French Departments of France, department of Marne (department), Marne, and the List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, 12th most populous city in Fran ...
in France. Hébert set up a "méthode naturelle" (''natural method'') session consisting of ten fundamental groups: walking, running, jumping, quadrupedal movement, climbing, balancing, throwing, lifting, self-defence, and swimming. These were intended to develop "the three main forces": energetic (willpower, courage, coolness, and firmness), moral (benevolence, assistance, honour, and honesty), and physical (muscles and breath). During World War I and World War II, teaching continued to expand, becoming the standard system of French military education and training. Inspired by Hébert, a Swiss architect developed a "''parcours du combattant''"—military obstacle course—the first of the courses that are now standard in military training and which led to the development of civilian
fitness trail A fitness trail, trim trail or parcourse consists of a wikt:path, path or wikt:course, course with outdoor exercise equipment or obstacles installed along its length for Exercise, exercising the human Human body, body to promote good health. ...
s and confidence courses.


John Ciampa

Born in 1922,
John Ciampa John Ciampa (1922–1970) was an Italian-American acrobatic stuntman and entertainer known by the stage names of the Human Fly, the Flying Phantom and the Brooklyn Tarzan. As a child, Ciampa had been fascinated by the acrobatic agility of film s ...
was acrobatic stuntman and entertainer known by the stage names of the Human Fly, the Flying Phantom and the Brooklyn Tarzan whose acrobatic buildering and freestyle tree climbing bear striking resemblance to late 20th Century parkour. Those feats were featured in two 1942 Paramount Pictures newsreels coincident with the release of the feature film Tarzan's New York Adventure.


Raymond and David Belle

Born in 1939 in
Vietnam Vietnam, officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (SRV), is a country at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of about and a population of over 100 million, making it the world's List of countries and depende ...
, Raymond Belle was the son of a French physician and Vietnamese mother. During the
First Indochina War The First Indochina War (generally known as the Indochina War in France, and as the Anti-French Resistance War in Vietnam, and alternatively internationally as the French-Indochina War) was fought between French Fourth Republic, France and Việ ...
, his father died and he was separated from his mother, after which he was sent to a military orphanage in
Da Lat Da Lat, or Dalat (; ), is the capital of Lâm Đồng Province and the largest city of the Central Highlands (Vietnam), Central Highlands region in Vietnam. The city is located above sea level on the Langbiang Plateau. Da Lat is one of the mos ...
at the age of seven. He took it upon himself to train harder and longer than everyone else in order never to be a victim. At night, when everyone else was asleep, he would be outside running or climbing trees. He would use the military
obstacle course An obstacle course is a series of challenging physical obstacles an individual, team or animal must navigate, usually while being timed. Obstacle courses can include running, climbing, jumping, crawling, swimming, and balancing elements with the ...
s in secret, and also created courses of his own that tested his endurance, strength, and flexibility. Doing this enabled him not only to survive the hardships he experienced during his childhood, but also eventually to thrive. After the
Battle of Dien Bien Phu The Battle of Điện Biên Phủ was a climactic confrontation of the First Indochina War that took place between 13 March and 7 May 1954. It was fought between the forces of the French Union and Viet Minh. The French began an operation to in ...
in 1954, he returned to France and remained in military education until the age of 19, when he joined the
Paris Fire Brigade The Paris Fire Brigade (, BSPP) is a French Army unit which serves as the primary fire and rescue service for Paris, the city's inner suburbs and certain sites of national strategic importance. The brigade's main area of responsibility is the ...
, a French Army unit. Belle, pp. 23–30 Raymond's son,
David Belle David Nicolas Williams Belle (born 29 April 1973) is a French actor, film choreographer and stunt coordinator. He is deemed the founder and leading pioneer of the physical discipline parkour, coining it based on his training and the teachings fro ...
, was born in 1973. He experimented with
gymnastics Gymnastics is a group of sport that includes physical exercises requiring Balance (ability), balance, Strength training, strength, Flexibility (anatomy), flexibility, agility, Motor coordination, coordination, artistry and endurance. The movem ...
and
athletics Athletics may refer to: Sports * Sport of athletics, a collection of sporting events that involve competitive running, jumping, throwing, and walking ** Track and field, a sub-category of the above sport * Athletics (physical culture), competitio ...
but became increasingly disaffected with both school and the
sports club A sports club or sporting club, sometimes an athletics club or sports society or sports association, is a group of people formed for the purpose of playing sports. Sports clubs range from organisations whose members play together, unpaid, and ...
s. As he got older, he learned of his father's exploits and was increasingly curious about what had enabled his father to accomplish these feats. Through conversations with his father, he realised that what he really wanted was a means to develop skills that would be useful to him in life, rather than just training to kick a ball or perform moves in a padded, indoor environment. Through conversations with his father, David learned about this way of training that his father called "''parcours''". He heard his father talk of the many repetitions he had done in order to find the best way of doing things. He learned that for his father, training was not a game but something vital which enabled him to survive and to protect the people he cared about. David realised that this was what he had been searching for, and so he began training in the same way. After a time, he found it far more important to him than schooling and he gave up his other commitments to focus all his time on his training.


Yamakasi

David initially trained on his own, and after moving to
Lisses Lisses () is a commune in the Essonne department in Île-de-France in northern France. Origin of the city name The name origin of this commune is not well known. One hypothesis is that Lisses is coming from the Latin Licia villa, as the initia ...
, found other young men (including his cousins) who had similar desires, and they began to train together. The group eventually included David Belle,
Sébastien Foucan Sébastien Foucan (born 27 May 1974) is a French freerunner. He is the founder of freerunning and considered an early developer of parkour. Known for his views on the philosophy of parkour and freerunning, Foucan stresses the need for trainin ...
, Châu Belle Dinh, Williams Belle, Yann Hnautra, Laurent Piemontesi, Guylain N'Guba Boyeke, Malik Diouf, and Charles Perrière. The group began calling themselves the ''Yamakasi'', from the
Lingala Lingala (or Ngala, Lingala: ) is a Bantu languages, Bantu language spoken in the northwest of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the northern half of the Republic of the Congo, in their capitals, Kinshasa and Brazzaville, and to a lesser de ...
''ya makási'', meaning strong in one's person, or "strong man, strong spirit" (see § Name and split below). Some members of the group drew inspiration from
Asian martial arts There are many distinct styles and schools of martial arts. Sometimes, schools or styles are introduced by individual teachers or masters, or as a brand name by a specific gym. Martial arts can be grouped by type or focus, or alternatively by re ...
, notably the acrobatics of
Jackie Chan Fang Shilong (born Chan Kong-sang; 7 April 1954), known professionally as Jackie Chan,; is a Hong Kong actor and filmmaker, known for his slapstick, acrobatic fighting style, comic timing, and innovative stunts, which he typically perf ...
such as ''
qinggong Qinggong () is a training technique for jumping off vertical surfaces from the Chinese martial arts. One way of training is to run up a slightly inclined ramp, gradually increasing the steepness of the incline until it is vertical. Etymology Th ...
'' displays in his
Hong Kong action films Hong Kong action cinema is the principal source of the Hong Kong film industry's global fame. Action films from Hong Kong have roots in Chinese culture, Chinese and Culture of Hong Kong, Hong Kong cultures, including Chinese opera, storytelling a ...
, and the training philosophy of
Bruce Lee Bruce Lee (born Lee Jun-fan; November 27, 1940 – July 20, 1973) was an American-born Hong Kong martial artist, actor, filmmaker, and philosopher. He was the founder of Jeet Kune Do, a hybrid martial arts philosophy which was formed from ...
, The group also was influenced by the
martial arts films Martial arts films are a subgenre of action films that feature martial arts combat between characters. These combats are usually the films' primary appeal and entertainment value, and often are a method of storytelling and character expression a ...
of Belgian actor
Jean-Claude Van Damme Jean-Claude Camille François Van Varenberg (, ; born 18 October 1960), known professionally as Jean-Claude Van Damme (, ), is a Belgian martial artist and actor. Born and raised in Brussels, his father enrolled him in a Shotokan karate schoo ...
.


Discipline

The group put themselves through challenges that forced them to find the physical and mental strength to succeed. Examples included training without food or water, or sleeping on the floor without a blanket to learn to endure the cold. For example, no one in the group was permitted to be late for training, as it would hold back the whole group. If any member completed a challenge, everyone else had to do the same thing. Belle and Perriére, p. 43 During their training, no one was allowed to complain or be negative. Few excuses were allowed. For instance, if someone claimed that his shoes were too worn out to make a jump, he had to do it anyway, even if it meant doing the jump barefoot. At the same time, everyone was required to have knowledge of their own limits. Belle and Perriére, p. 46 Respecting one's health and physical well-being was one of the foundations of the group. If any member hurt himself during or after the execution of a movement, the movement was deemed a failure. A movement executed only once was not considered an achievement; only with repetition was the challenge complete. Every movement had to be repeated at least ten times in a row without the traceur having to push his limits or sustaining any injury. If any mistake was made by any traceur in the group everyone had to start all over again. Humility was an important principle. No traceur was allowed to feel superior to someone else, for example, by executing a movement only to show off in front of someone who could not perform the movement. If any traceur in the group claimed that he had completed a difficult and dangerous challenge that should not be attempted unaided, he had to prove his claims by doing the challenge again. Anyone who lied violated the principle of humility. To join the group, new members had to be recommended by an existing member and then pass tests to evaluate their motivation for joining. Belle and Perriére, p. 42 Despite the huge emphasis on the collective, each traceur had to progress and develop independently—"to create the means to be yourself"—and there was a complete trust within the group. Every traceur was to encourage the others and show confidence through their behaviour. Belle and Perriére, p. 47 If a member violated the principles, the group could meet without the offending person to discuss various punishments. Anyone deemed unsuitable could be temporarily or even permanently banned from the group in order to uphold its disciplines and values.


Name and split

In 1997, David Belle's brother Jean-François invited the group to perform for the public in a firefighter show in Paris.
Angel An angel is a spiritual (without a physical body), heavenly, or supernatural being, usually humanoid with bird-like wings, often depicted as a messenger or intermediary between God (the transcendent) and humanity (the profane) in variou ...
, p. 35.
For the performance, the group named themselves ''
Yamakasi The Yamakasi () are the original group of '' l'art du deplacement'' (parkour) practitioners from Lisses, France. The nine original members were David Belle, Sébastien Foucan, Châu Belle Dinh, Williams Belle, Yann Hnautra, Laurent Piemontesi, ...
'', from the
Congolese Congolese or Kongolese may refer to: African peoples * Congolese people (disambiguation) * Kongo people, a Bantu ethnic group who live along the Atlantic coast of Africa from Pointe-Noire (Republic of Congo) to Luanda, Angola, primarily defined by ...
Lingala Lingala (or Ngala, Lingala: ) is a Bantu languages, Bantu language spoken in the northwest of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the northern half of the Republic of the Congo, in their capitals, Kinshasa and Brazzaville, and to a lesser de ...
''ya makási'', meaning strong in one's person, or "strong man, strong spirit". Sébastien Foucan also invented a name for what they were doing: "''l'art du déplacement'' (French for "the art of movement"). The firefighter performance caused both positive and negative attention. Some members of the group were concerned how the public would view their discipline since the performance did not demonstrate all aspects of it, such as their hard training and their values and ethics. Jean-François also sent pictures and video of the group to a French TV programme, and the popularity of parkour began to increase. A series of television programmes in various countries subsequently featured video footage of the group, and they began to get more requests for performances. During this time, conflicting interests arose within the group. Sébastien Foucan wanted to teach more rather than to train more, and David Belle had the ambition to become an actor. David and Sébastien chose to leave the group, and used the name "parkour" to describe their activity (see § Etymology above). The seven remaining Yamakasi members continued to use the term ''l'art du déplacement'' Belle, pp. 71–79 (see § Derivative terminologies and disciplines below).


Organizations

International parkour organizations include the
World Freerunning and Parkour Federation The World Freerunning Parkour Federation (WFPF) is an international federation or organization that was established in 2007. Its focus is to bring together patrons of Parkour and Freerunning and aims to bring the sport and philosophy to the mainstr ...
, established in 2007, who have worked with
MTV MTV (an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable television television channel, channel and the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group sub-division of the Paramount Media Networks division of Paramount Global. Launched on ...
to produce parkour-related shows.


Philosophy

According to Williams Belle, the philosophies and theories behind parkour are an integral aspect of the art, one that many non-practitioners have never been exposed to. Belle says he trains people because he wants it "to be alive" and "for people to use it". Châu Belle explains it is a "type of freedom" or "kind of expression"; that parkour is "only a state of mind" rather than a set of actions, and that it is about overcoming and adapting to mental and emotional obstacles as well as physical barriers. Traceur Dylan Baker says, "Parkour also influences one's thought processes by enhancing self-confidence and critical thinking skills that allow one to overcome everyday physical and mental obstacles". A study by ''Neuropsychiatrie de l'Enfance et de l'Adolescence'' (Neuropsychiatry of Childhood and Adolescence) in France found traceurs seek more excitement and leadership situations than gymnasts do. Academic research on parkour has tended to describe how parkour provides a novel way of interacting with the urban environment that challenges the use and meaning of urban space, metropolitan life, and embodiment. A newer convention of parkour philosophy has been the idea of "human reclamation". Andy Tran of Urban Evolution clarifies it as "a means of reclaiming what it means to be a human being. It teaches us to move using the natural methods that we should have learned from infancy. It teaches us to touch the world and interact with it, instead of being sheltered by it." Another traceur writes, "It is as much as a part of truly learning the physical art as well as being able to master the movements; it gives you the ability to overcome your fears and pains and reapply this to life, as you must be able to control your mind in order to master the art of parkour."


Competition

A campaign was started on 1 May 2007 by the Parkour.NET portal to preserve parkour's philosophy against sports competition and rivalry. In the words of
Erwan Le Corre Erwan Le Corre, a French American born on September 10, 1971, is the founder and innovator of a physical education system and lifestyle known as MovNat, which derives from the French words "mouvement naturel" ("natural movement"). Early life an ...
, "Competition pushes people to fight against others for the satisfaction of a crowd and/or the benefits of a few business people by changing its mindset. Parkour is unique and cannot be a competitive sport unless it ignores its altruistic core of self-development. If parkour becomes a sport, it will be hard to seriously teach and spread parkour as a non-competitive activity. And a new sport will be spread that may be called parkour, but that won't hold its philosophical essence anymore." Red Bull's sponsored athlete for parkour, Ryan Doyle, has said, "Sometimes people ask, 'Who is the best at parkour?' and it is because they don't understand what Parkour is; 'Who is the best?' is what you would say about a sport, and parkour is not a sport—it is an art, it's a discipline. That's like saying, 'What's the best song in the world? This seems to be the consensus among many professional traceurs who view parkour as a lifestyle more than as a set of tricks, as has been popularised by YouTube and most media exposure. There are competitions that use parkour as the main influence for formatting and judging criteria. Sport Parkour League's "North America Parkour Championships" hosts a series of local and regional qualifier events which culminate in a final event in Vancouver, B.C. Red Bull's Art of Motion event is the longest running and highest profile professional freerunning competition.


David Belle

In his 2009 book ''Parkour'', David Belle stressed that the most important aspect of parkour is not the physical movements, but rather the practitioner's mentality and understanding of its principles. "When young trainees come to see me and give me videos telling me to check out what they are doing, I just take the tape and throw it away. What I'm interested in is what the guy's got in his head, if he has self-confidence, if he masters the technique, if he has understood the principles of parkour. I just can't deal with guys who do Parkour because they saw videos on the Internet and thought it was kinda cool and want to do even better." Further, he states the importance of traceurs being aware of their abilities and limitations, and developing in their own way. "When a young person asks me, 'Can you show me how to do this?' I simply answer, ‘No, I am going to show you how ''I'' do it. Then, you'll have to learn with your own technique, your own way of moving, your style, your abilities and your limitations. You are going to learn to be yourself, not someone else along the way.’" The philosophy of parkour has been compared to that of martial arts. In a 2007 feature story by ''The New Yorker'', Ryan Ford, one of the first American traceurs, said, "There's a quote by
Bruce Lee Bruce Lee (born Lee Jun-fan; November 27, 1940 – July 20, 1973) was an American-born Hong Kong martial artist, actor, filmmaker, and philosopher. He was the founder of Jeet Kune Do, a hybrid martial arts philosophy which was formed from ...
that's my motto: 'There are no limits. There are plateaus, but you must not stay there, you must go beyond them. A man must constantly exceed his level.' If you're not better than you were the day before, then what are you doing—what's the point?" In an interview with the press, Belle explained that parkour is a training method for warriors. "So many people try to train easy—'Come do parkour! It's really cool!' But if tomorrow I made you do real training, you would end up crying. That's what you need to know: you are going to cry, you are going to bleed and you are going to sweat like never before." In his book, Belle also quotes his father Raymond, "If two roads open up before you, always take the most difficult one. Because you know you can travel the easy one." Belle is an influential proponent of discipline and control in parkour, saying, "Precision is all about being measured," and going on to describe parkour as an art that requires huge amounts of repetition and practice to master. "With parkour, I often say, 'Once is never'. In other words, someone can manage a jump one time but it does not mean anything. It can be luck or chance. When you make a jump, you have to do it at least three times to be sure you can actually do it. It's an unavoidable rule. Do it the hard way and stop lying to yourself. When you come for training, you have to train. Even if it means doing the same jump fifty or a hundred times." Belle, p. 59 To its founder, parkour is a method of self-refinement, used for learning to control and focus oneself.


Practice


Movement

While there is no official list of "moves" in parkour, the style in which practitioners move often sets them apart from others, and there are a number of named movements that are characteristic, for example: * "Parkour roll": Rolling to absorb impacts from larger drops, moving diagonally over a shoulder to convert momentum from vertical to horizontal. * "Precision jump": Jumping and landing accurately with the feet on small or narrow obstacles. * "Arm jump": Jumping and landing feet-first on a vertical surface, catching the horizontal top with the hands. * "Wall run": Running toward a high wall and then jumping and pushing off the wall with a foot to reach the top of the wall. * "Climb up": Moving from a position hanging from a wall-top or ledge, to standing on the top or vaulting over to the other side.


Equipment

Parkour is practiced without traditional equipment, though items such as bars, walls, and boxes found in the environment in which the parkour is being practiced in, are utilised to better navigate the area. Practitioners normally train wearing light, non-restrictive casual clothing. Traceurs who wear gloves are rare—bare hands are considered better for grip and tactile feedback. Light running shoes with good grip and flexibility are encouraged because they allow for more natural and fluid movements. Practitioners often use minimalist shoes, sometimes as a progression to bare feet, for better sensitivity and balance, while others prefer more cushioning for better absorption of impacts from large jumps. Barefoot training is done by some for movement competency without gear—David Belle noted that "bare feet are the best shoes." Various
sneaker Sneakers (American English, US) or trainers (British English, UK), also known by a #Names, wide variety of other names, are shoes primarily designed for sports or other forms of physical exercise, but are also widely used for everyday casual ...
manufacturers have developed shoes specifically for parkour and
freerunning Freerunning is an athletic and acrobatic discipline incorporating an aesthetic element, and can be considered either a sport or a performance art, or both. Freerunning is similar to parkour, from which it is derived, but emphasizes artistry over ...
. Many other companies around the world have started offering clothing targeted at parkour.


Risks


Trespassing

Parkour is not widely practiced in dedicated public facilities. Although efforts are being made to create places for it, many traceurs do not like the idea, as it is contradictory to parkour's values of adaptation, creativity, and freedom. Traceurs practice parkour in both rural and urban areas such as gyms, parks, playgrounds, offices, and abandoned structures. Concerns have been raised regarding trespassing, damage of property,Gloucestershire – Rooftop-jumping youths arrested
.
BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...
. 31 January 2008. Retrieved 15 March 2008.
and use of inappropriate places such as cemeteries. Many parkour organizations around the globe support the ''Leave No Trace'' initiative, an urban version of the outdoor conservation ethic created by the Seattle
nonprofit A nonprofit organization (NPO), also known as a nonbusiness entity, nonprofit institution, not-for-profit organization, or simply a nonprofit, is a non-governmental (private) legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public, or so ...
''Parkour Visions'' in 2008, promoting safety, respect for the spaces used and their other users, and sometimes includes picking up rubbish to leave areas in better condition than they were found.


Injuries and deaths

Concerns have been raised by law enforcement and fire and rescue teams about the risks inherent in jumping off high buildings. They argue that practitioners are needlessly risking damage to both themselves and rooftops by practicing at height, with police forces calling for practitioners to stay off the rooftops. Some practitioners of parkour agree that such behaviour should be discouraged. Because parkour philosophy is about learning to control oneself in interaction with the environment, many parkour experts consider serious injury evidence of the traceur's failure to follow the precepts of the discipline, specifically, knowing one's limitations. Daniel Ilabaca, co-founder of the World Parkour and Freerunning Federation, said, "Thinking you're going to fail at something gives you a higher risk of doing just that. Committing to something you're thinking or knowing you will land gives you a higher chance of landing or completing the task." On biomechanical grounds, studies found parkour landing techniques result in lower landing forces in comparison with traditional sport techniques. In a survey of parkour-related emergency department visits in the United States between 2009 and 2015, most injuries were reportedly caused by landing or from striking objects. American traceur Mark Toorock said injuries are rare "because participants rely not on what they can't control—wheels or the icy surfaces of snowboarding and skiing—but their own hands and feet." Lanier Johnson, executive director of the American Sports Medicine Institute, said that many of the injuries are not reported.


Impact

Initially featured in films of French director/producer
Luc Besson Luc Paul Maurice Besson (; born 18 March 1959) is a French filmmaker. He directed and produced the films '' Subway'' (1985), '' The Big Blue'' (1988), and '' La Femme Nikita'' (1990). Associated with the '' Cinéma du look'' film movement, he h ...
, parkour was first introduced to the British public by the
BBC One BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's oldest and flagship channel, and is known for broadcasting mainstream programming, which includes BBC News television b ...
TV channel trailer ''Rush Hour'' in April 2002. It featured David Belle leaping across London's rooftops from his office to home, in an attempt to catch his favourite BBC programme, and captured the imagination of many viewers, especially when they learned no special effects or wires were used. This advertisement, along with others for
Coca-Cola Coca-Cola, or Coke, is a cola soft drink manufactured by the Coca-Cola Company. In 2013, Coke products were sold in over 200 countries and territories worldwide, with consumers drinking more than 1.8 billion company beverage servings ...
,
Nike Nike often refers to: * Nike, Inc., a major American producer of athletic shoes, apparel, and sports equipment * Nike (mythology), a Greek goddess who personifies victory Nike may also refer to: People * Nike (name), a surname and feminine giv ...
, and
Toyota is a Japanese Multinational corporation, multinational Automotive industry, automotive manufacturer headquartered in Toyota City, Aichi, Japan. It was founded by Kiichiro Toyoda and incorporated on August 28, 1937. Toyota is the List of manuf ...
, had a large-scale impact on public awareness of parkour. The creation of parkour show-reels and documentaries has been crucial to the spread of parkour, and is common in the parkour community. ''
Jump London ''Jump London'' is a documentary first broadcast by Channel 4 about parkour and free running in September 2003, directed by Mike Christie and produced by Optomen Television. It later spawned a sequel, ''Jump Britain'' that first aired in Janu ...
'' is a 2003 documentary explaining some of the background of parkour, culminating with
Sébastien Foucan Sébastien Foucan (born 27 May 1974) is a French freerunner. He is the founder of freerunning and considered an early developer of parkour. Known for his views on the philosophy of parkour and freerunning, Foucan stresses the need for trainin ...
, Johann Vigroux, and Jérôme Ben Aoues demonstrating their parkour skills. ''Jump London'' changed the presence of parkour in the UK almost overnight and is widely credited for inspiring a new generation of traceurs. It was followed by ''
Jump Britain ''Jump Britain'' is a 2005 documentary about freerunning. Directed by Mike Christie and produced by Carbon Media, it is a sequel to Channel 4's '' Jump London''. Two of the three freerunners from ''Jump London'', Sébastien Foucan and Jérôme ...
'' in 2005. Both Jump films were shown in more than 80 countries, thereby introducing the discipline and its philosophy to an unprecedented global audience. Both films have been cited by numerous practitioners as their motivation for taking up the discipline. The Australian version of ''
60 Minutes ''60 Minutes'' is an American television news magazine broadcast on the CBS television network. Debuting in 1968, the program was created by Don Hewitt and Bill Leonard, who distinguished it from other news programs by using a unique style o ...
'' broadcast a segment about parkour on 16 September 2007, featuring Foucan and Stephane Vigroux. Parkour is not defined by a set of rules or guidelines, a feature which has proven particularly attractive to young people, allowing them to explore and engage in the activity on their own terms. It can be easily accepted by all cultures as a means of personal expression and recreation. For example, in 2010 ''
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...
'' published a short video featuring three young men from the Gaza Strip who were active members of the parkour community. In 2014, the
BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...
covered youth parkour participation in
Jammu and Kashmir Jammu and Kashmir may refer to: * Jammu and Kashmir (union territory), a region administered by India as a union territory since 2019 * Jammu and Kashmir (state), a region administered by India as a state from 1952 to 2019 * Jammu and Kashmir (prin ...
. Zahid Shah founded the Kashmir Freerunning and Parkour Federation, finding hope in the non-violent discipline of parkour.


Entertainment

Parkour has become a popular element in action sequences, with film directors hiring parkour practitioners as
stunt performer A stunt performer, often called a stuntman or stuntwoman and occasionally stuntperson or stunt-person, is a trained professional who performs daring acts, often as a career. Stunt performers usually appear in films or on television, as opposed ...
s. The first director to do so was
Luc Besson Luc Paul Maurice Besson (; born 18 March 1959) is a French filmmaker. He directed and produced the films '' Subway'' (1985), '' The Big Blue'' (1988), and '' La Femme Nikita'' (1990). Associated with the '' Cinéma du look'' film movement, he h ...
, for the film ''
Taxi 2 ''Taxi 2'' () is a 2000 French action comedy film directed by Gérard Krawczyk and released in March 2000. Starring Samy Naceri, Frédéric Diefenthal and Marion Cotillard. It is the second installment in the ''Taxi'' film series. It is a seque ...
'' in 1998, followed by ''
Yamakasi The Yamakasi () are the original group of '' l'art du deplacement'' (parkour) practitioners from Lisses, France. The nine original members were David Belle, Sébastien Foucan, Châu Belle Dinh, Williams Belle, Yann Hnautra, Laurent Piemontesi, ...
'' in 2001 featuring members of the original
Yamakasi The Yamakasi () are the original group of '' l'art du deplacement'' (parkour) practitioners from Lisses, France. The nine original members were David Belle, Sébastien Foucan, Châu Belle Dinh, Williams Belle, Yann Hnautra, Laurent Piemontesi, ...
group, and its sequel ''
Les fils du vent ''Les fils du vent'' ("The Sons of the Wind", also known as ''The Great Challenge'' and ''Sons of the Wind: Bangkok Ninjas'') is a 2004 French action film featuring the Yamakasi. It is a semi-sequel to the Luc Besson–produced 2001 film ''Yamakas ...
'' in 2004. Also in 2004, Besson wrote ''
District 13 ''District B13'' ( French title ''Banlieue 13'' or ''B13''), is a 2004 French action film directed by Pierre Morel, produced by Luc Besson, and written by Besson and Bibi Naceri. It depicts parkour in several action sequences, which was complet ...
'', another feature film involving advanced parkour chase sequences, starring
David Belle David Nicolas Williams Belle (born 29 April 1973) is a French actor, film choreographer and stunt coordinator. He is deemed the founder and leading pioneer of the physical discipline parkour, coining it based on his training and the teachings fro ...
and
Cyril Raffaelli Cyril Raffaelli (born 1 April 1974), sometimes credited as Cyril Xavier Cuenel Raffaelli and Cyril Quenel-Raffaelli, is a French traceur, martial artist and stuntman. Biography Utilizing shotokan karate and wushu, Raffaelli has been in films wit ...
, followed by the sequel '' District 13: Ultimatum'' in 2009 and remade in English as '' Brick Mansions'' in 2014. In 2006, the
James Bond The ''James Bond'' franchise focuses on James Bond (literary character), the titular character, a fictional Secret Intelligence Service, British Secret Service agent created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels ...
film '' Casino Royale'' featured Sébastien Foucan in a chase taking place early in the movie, sparking renewed media interest in parkour. Along with '' The Bourne Ultimatum'' (2007), ''Casino Royale'' is credited with starting a new wave of Parkour-inspired stunts in
Western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that id ...
film and television. Parkour was prominent in ''
Live Free or Die Hard ''Live Free or Die Hard'' (released as ''Die Hard 4.0'' outside North America) is a 2007 American action thriller film directed by Len Wiseman, the fourth installment in the Die Hard (franchise), ''Die Hard'' film series. It is based on the 199 ...
'' (2007), again with stuntman/actor Cyril Raffaelli, and '' Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time'' (2010), choreographed by David Belle. Several films besides ''Yamakasi'' are about thieves who use parkour, such as ''
Breaking and Entering Burglary, also called breaking and entering (B&E) or housebreaking, is a property crime involving the illegal entry into a building or other area without permission, typically with the intention of committing a further criminal offence. Usually ...
'' (2006), ''Run'' (2013), and ''
Tracers Tracer may refer to: Science * Flow tracer, any fluid property used to track fluid motion * Fluorescent tracer, a substance such as 2-NBDG containing a fluorophore that is used for tracking purposes * Histochemical tracer, a substance used for ...
'' (2015). The 2011 film '' Freerunner'' is about eight freerunners racing through a city for survival. The 2019
Netflix Netflix is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service. The service primarily distributes original and acquired films and television shows from various genres, and it is available internationally in multiple lang ...
film '' 6 Underground'' featured several parkour scenes choreographed and performed by team
Storror Storror (stylized as STORROR) is a group of seven parkour and freerunning athletes from the United Kingdom. They run a YouTube channel. Storror was established in 2010 by brothers Max Cave and Benj Cave, as well as Drew Taylor. They were later j ...
. Parkour also featured in ''
Dhoom 3 ''Dhoom 3'' (), stylised as ''Dhoom: 3'', is a 2013 Indian Hindi-language heist action film written & directed by Vijay Krishna Acharya and produced by Aditya Chopra, who co-wrote the story. The film, which is the third installment of '' Dho ...
'' (2013),
Bang Bang! ''Bang Bang!'' is a 2014 Indian Hindi-language action comedy film directed by Siddharth Anand and produced by Fox Star Studios. An official remake of the 2010 American film ''Knight and Day'', it marks Anand's running foray into the action ge ...
(2014) and ''
Aadhi ''Aadhi'' is a 2018 Indian Malayalam-language action thriller film directed by Jeethu Joseph and produced by Antony Perumbavoor through Aashirvad Cinemas. The film stars Pranav Mohanlal in the title role (in his debut role) and with an ense ...
'' (2018). Parkour is also featured on TV.
MTV MTV (an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable television television channel, channel and the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group sub-division of the Paramount Media Networks division of Paramount Global. Launched on ...
's show ''Ultimate Parkour Challenge'' premiered as a one-hour special in October 2009 starring the athletes of the World Freerunning & Parkour Federation. This was followed in May 2010 with a six-episode series of the same name. The athletes were
Daniel Ilabaca Daniel Marcus Ilabaca is a free runner and traceur. He along with Ryan Doyle, are the founders of the World Freerunning and Parkour Federation. Personal life Ilabaca was born on 23 January 1988 in Moreton, England. Career Daniel first not ...
,
Tim Shieff Timothy Shieff is an English freerunner. He won the ''Barclaycard World Freerun Championship'' in 2009 and participated on the television programme MTV's '' Ultimate Parkour Challenge''. He has also competed on ''American Ninja Warrior'' and ' ...
,
Ryan Doyle Ryan Doyle (born 22 September 1984) is a freerunner, martial artist, coach, and actor from Liverpool, England, and is a founding athlete of the World Freerunning and Parkour Federation. Freerunning and parkour interests In his teenage years, ...
, Michael Turner, Oleg Vorslav, Ben Jenkin, Daniel Arroyo, Pip Andersen and King David. The programme format was a two-part weekly competition in different Southern California locations.
Professional wrestler Professional wrestling, often shortened to either pro wrestling or wrestling,The term "wrestling" is most often widely used to specifically refer to modern scripted professional wrestling, though it is also used to refer to real-life wrest ...
John Hennigan is a long-time practitioner of parkour and often incorporates it into his wrestling style, with the
WWE World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) is an American professional wrestling promotion. It is owned and operated by TKO Group Holdings, a majority-owned subsidiary of Endeavor Group Holdings. A global integrated media and entertainment company, ...
giving him the nickname "The Prince of Parkour". Actor
Stephen Amell Stephen Adam Amell (born May 8, 1981) is a Canadian actor. He came to prominence for playing the lead role of Oliver Queen on the CW superhero series ''Arrow'' (2012–2020), based on DC Comics. Amell also appeared in subsequent Arrowverse franc ...
learned parkour at Tempest Academy in preparation for his role as Oliver Queen in the television series ''
Arrow An arrow is a fin-stabilized projectile launched by a bow. A typical arrow usually consists of a long, stiff, straight shaft with a weighty (and usually sharp and pointed) arrowhead attached to the front end, multiple fin-like stabilizers c ...
'', and co-star
Caity Lotz Caity Lotz (born December 30, 1986) is an American actress, dancer, and singer. She has portrayed Stephanie Horton in the AMC series ''Mad Men'', Officer Kirsten Landry in the MTV mockumentary series ''Death Valley'' (2011), Annie in '' The Pact ...
is also a practitioner. Modern video games frequently include aspects of parkour as major game-play elements. Since the series' inception, ''Tomb Raider'' series has included increasingly numerous parkour elements. The ''Assassin's Creed'' series also makes heavy use of parkour movement (called freerunning in the game). The ''
Mirror's Edge ''Mirror's Edge'' is a 2008 action-adventure platform game developed by DICE and published by Electronic Arts. The game was released for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 in November 2008, and for Windows in January 2009. Set in a near-future city, i ...
'' games are heavily inspired by parkour, consisting entirely of efficiently moving around buildings, rooftops, and other obstacles. '' Brink'' introduced a parkour mechanic into a realistic
first-person shooter A first-person shooter (FPS) is a video game genre, video game centered on gun fighting and other weapon-based combat seen from a First person (video games), first-person perspective, with the player experiencing the action directly through t ...
. ''
Prince of Persia ''Prince of Persia'' is a video game franchise created by Jordan Mechner. It is centered around a series of action-adventure games focused on various incarnations of the eponymous Prince, set in ancient and medieval Persia. The first two ga ...
'' and ''
Dying Light ''Dying Light'' is a 2015 survival horror video game developed by Techland and published by Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment. The game's story follows undercover agent Kyle Crane who is sent to infiltrate a quarantine zone in a fictiona ...
'' include a central parkour mechanic, while '' Crackdown'' and ''
Crackdown 2 ''Crackdown 2'' is a 2010 action-adventure game developed by Ruffian Games and published by Microsoft Game Studios. It was released for the Xbox 360 in July 2010 and is a direct sequel to the 2007 video game '' Crackdown''. A sequel, ''Crackdown ...
'' include an emphasis on gripping and vaulting from ledges and protruding objects. ''
Tony Hawk's American Wasteland ''Tony Hawk's American Wasteland'' is a 2005 skateboarding video game developed by Neversoft and published by Activision. It is the seventh entry in the '' Tony Hawk's'' series and was released initially for the GameCube, PlayStation 2 and Xbox i ...
'' allows the character to use several freerunning techniques while not on the skateboard. ''
Tron Evolution ''Tron: Evolution'' is a 2010 action-adventure game published by Disney Interactive Studios. It serves as a tie-in to the 2010 film ''Tron: Legacy'', with its game taking place before the events of the film. Announced at the 2009 Spike Video G ...
''s basic movements and combat were based on parkour and
capoeira Capoeira () is an Afro-Brazilian martial art and game that includes elements of dance, acrobatics, capoeira music, music, and spirituality. It likely originated from enslaved Mbundu people, of the Kingdom of Ndongo, in present-day Angola. The ...
.


Military training

Although parkour itself grew out of military obstacle-course training, it has become a separate discipline. After the attention that parkour received following the 2006 film '' Casino Royale'', military forces around the world began looking for ways to incorporate elements from parkour into military training. A physical trainer with the Royal Marines trained with parkour practitioners with hopes of introducing some of their techniques to his own students. Colorado Parkour began a project to introduce elements from parkour into the U.S. military and one
San Diego San Diego ( , ) is a city on the Pacific coast of Southern California, adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a population of over 1.4 million, it is the List of United States cities by population, eighth-most populous city in t ...
staff sergeant trained
US Marines The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines or simply the Marines, is the Marines, maritime land force service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is responsible for conducting expedi ...
in parkour.


Scientific research and applications

Studies have found that in exercises such as the standing long jump, depth jump, and vertical jump, parkour athletes outperform physical educators, gymnasts, and power athletes. Parkour training is especially linked with the development of eccentric load resistance and jumping ability. A study into the mechanics of the standing long jump showed that experienced traceurs use a lower take off angle than beginners (~25.6° vs ~34°). Wakai and Linthorne had previously estimated the optimal angle to be close to 22.6°. Studies and experiments have integrated parkour kinaesthetics into robotics.


Derivative terminologies and disciplines

In September 2003, Mike Christie's documentary ''
Jump London ''Jump London'' is a documentary first broadcast by Channel 4 about parkour and free running in September 2003, directed by Mike Christie and produced by Optomen Television. It later spawned a sequel, ''Jump Britain'' that first aired in Janu ...
'', starring
Sébastien Foucan Sébastien Foucan (born 27 May 1974) is a French freerunner. He is the founder of freerunning and considered an early developer of parkour. Known for his views on the philosophy of parkour and freerunning, Foucan stresses the need for trainin ...
, was released. In the documentary, the term "
freerunning Freerunning is an athletic and acrobatic discipline incorporating an aesthetic element, and can be considered either a sport or a performance art, or both. Freerunning is similar to parkour, from which it is derived, but emphasizes artistry over ...
" was used as an attempt to translate "parkour", in order to make it more appealing to the English-speaking audience.Edwardes, Dan (2009) ''The Parkour & Freerunning Handbook''. It Books. . p. 11 Foucan decided to keep using the term "freerunning" to describe his discipline, to distinguish it from David Belle's methods.
Angel An angel is a spiritual (without a physical body), heavenly, or supernatural being, usually humanoid with bird-like wings, often depicted as a messenger or intermediary between God (the transcendent) and humanity (the profane) in variou ...
, p. 39.
The remaining seven ''Yamakasi'' members continued to use the term "''l'art du déplacement'', also not wanting to associate it too closely with parkour. Similar to Sébastien's freerunning, ''l'art du déplacement'' is less about the hard discipline of the original ''Yamakasi'' group; rather, it takes a participatory approach focused on making the teaching more accessible. David Belle kept the term "parkour", saying the group contributed to the development of it, but that his father was the source of his motivation and had verbally communicated this method only to him. Both parkour and freerunning encompass the ideas of overcoming obstacles and self-expression; in freerunning, the greater emphasis is on self-expression. Although the differences between the disciplines are often hard to discern, practitioners tend to aspire to parkour and describe themselves as traceurs rather than as freerunners.


See also

*
Acrobatics Acrobatics () is the performance of human feats of balance (ability), balance, agility, and motor coordination. Acrobatic skills are used in performing arts, sports, sporting events, and martial arts. Extensive use of acrobatic skills are most ...
*
Buildering Buildering (also known as edificeering, urban climbing, structuring, skywalking, boulding, or stegophily) describes the act of climbing on the outside of buildings and other artificial structures. If done without ropes or protection far off the ...
*
Calisthenics Calisthenics (American English) or callisthenics (British English) () is a form of strength training that utilizes an individual's body weight as resistance to perform multi-joint, compound movements with little or no equipment. Calisthenics sol ...
*
Dérive The ''dérive'' (, "drift") is an unplanned journey through a landscape, usually city, urban, in which participants stop focusing on their everyday relations to their social environment. Developed by members of the Letterist International, it ...
– a philosophy and technique of rapid, serendipitous movement through mostly urban environments *
Freerunning Freerunning is an athletic and acrobatic discipline incorporating an aesthetic element, and can be considered either a sport or a performance art, or both. Freerunning is similar to parkour, from which it is derived, but emphasizes artistry over ...
*
List of sports The following is a list of sports and games, divided by category. According to the ''World Sports Encyclopaedia'' (2003), there are 8,000 known indigenous sports and sporting games. Acrobatic arts * Breakdancing * Color guard (flag spinning) * ...
*
Obstacle racing Obstacle course racing (OCR) is a sport in which a competitor, traveling on foot, must overcome various physical challenges in the form of obstacles. Races vary in length from courses with obstacles close together to events of several kilomete ...
*
Platform game A platformer (also called a platform game, and sometimes a jump 'n' run game) is a subgenre of action game in which the core objective is to move the player character between points in an environment. Platform games are characterized by levels wi ...
*
Qinggong Qinggong () is a training technique for jumping off vertical surfaces from the Chinese martial arts. One way of training is to run up a slightly inclined ramp, gradually increasing the steepness of the incline until it is vertical. Etymology Th ...
– Chinese martial arts techniques *
Rooftopping Rooftopping, sometimes called roofing (or climbing), refers to the (typically illegal) unsecured ascent of rooftops, skyscrapers, towers, cranes, antennas, smokestacks, or other tall structures. Rooftoppers usually take photos or videos of the ...
*
Street workout Street workouts are a physical activity performed in outdoor parks or public facilities. The movement behind street workouts became popular in Russia, Israel, Myanmar, Morocco, Uzbekistan, Eastern Europe, and the United States, especially in New ...
*
Tricking (martial arts) Tricking is a training discipline that combines kicks with flips and twists from martial arts and gymnastics as well as many dance moves and styles from dance. It is not a martial art, though it borrows techniques from taekwondo, kung fu, wushu ...
*
Urban exploration Urban exploration (often shortened as UE, urbex, and sometimes known as roof and tunnel hacking) is the exploration of manmade structures, usually abandoned ruins or hidden components of the manmade environment. Photography and historical inte ...
*
Woggle hopping Woggle hopping is a playful form of physical exercise and agility demonstration inspired by the practices of West Yorkshire scoutmaster George Albert Corner in the mid-20th century. The activity involves jumping over objects that are the height of ...
*
World Chase Tag World Chase Tag is an international championship for competitive parkour involving the game of tag. Events have been televised on NBCSN in the United States, and on Channel 4, ITV and BBC Three in the United Kingdom. Events have also attracted m ...


Citations


General and cited sources

* * *


External links

{{Authority control Acrobatic sports Articles containing video clips Culture of France Games and sports introduced in 1988 Jumping sports Outdoor recreation Sports originating in France Types of climbing