Parkour
Le Parkour or l'art du déplacement (English: the art of displacement) is a physical art of French origin, the aim of which is to move from point A to point B as efficiently and quickly as possible, using the abilities of the human body. It is meant to help one overcome obstacles, which can be anything in the surrounding environment — from branches and rocks to rails and concrete walls — so parkour can be practiced in both rural and urban areas. Male parkour practitioner are recognized as traceur and female as traceuse.
Parkour is a physical activity that is very difficult to categorize. It is definitely not an extreme sport, but an art that resembles martial arts. However, most traceurs are content to simply put parkour in its own category: "parkour is parkour".
The most characteristic aspect of parkour is efficiency. The basic meaning of this is that a traceur must not merely move as fast as they can, but move in a way that is the least energy-consuming and simultaneously the most direct. In addition, since parkour's unofficial motto is être et durer (to be and to last), efficiency also involves avoiding injuries, short-term or long-term.
According to founder David Belle, the spirit of parkour is guided in part by the notions of "escape" and "reach", that is, the idea of using physical agility and quick thinking to get out of difficult situations, and to be able to go anywhere that one desires.
Inspiration for parkour came from many sources, the foremost being the 'Natural Method of Physical Culture' developed by George Hébert in the early twentieth century. French soldiers in Vietnam were inspired by Hébert's work and created what is now known as parkour. David Belle was introduced to the art as well as Hébert's methode naturelle by his father, Raymond Belle, a French soldier who practiced the two disciplines. The word parkour derives from parcours du combattant, the obstacle courses of Hébert's method and a classic of military training. The younger Belle had participated in activities such as martial arts and gymnastics, and sought to apply his athletic prowess in a manner that would have practical use in life.
After moving to Lisses, Belle continued his journey with others. "From then on we developed," says Foucan in Jump London, "And really the whole town was there for us; there for free running. You just have to look, you just have to think, like children." This, as he describes, is "the vision of Parkour".
Over the years as dedicated practitioners improved their skills, their moves continued to grow in magnitude, so that building-to-building jumps and drops of over a story became common in media portrayals, often leaving people with a slanted view on the nature of parkour. In fact, ground-based movement is much more common than anything involving rooftops.
The journey of parkour from the Parisian suburbs to its current status as a widely practiced activity outside of France created splits among the originators. The founders of parkour started out in a group named the Yamakasi, but later separated due to disagreements over what David Belle referred to as "prostitution of the art," the production of a feature film starring the Yamakasi in 2001. Sébastien Foucan, David Belle, were amongst those who split at this point. The name 'Yamakasi' is taken from Lingala, a language spoken in the Congo, and means strong spirit, strong body, strong man.
Basic movements
Synonym Description
French English
Atterrissage or réception Landing Bending the knees when toes make contact with ground (never land flat footed always land on toes).
Équilibre Balance Walking or crawling along the crest of an obstacle; literally "balance."
Équilibre de chat Cat balance Quadrupedal movement along the crest of an obstacle.
Franchissement [fʁɑ̃.ʃis.mɑ̃] Underbar, jump through Jumping or swinging through a gap between obstacles; literally "to cross" or "to break through."
Lâché [la.ʃe] Dismount, swinging jump Hanging drop; lacher literally meaning "to let go." To hang or swing (on a bar, on a wall, on a branch) and let go, dropping to the ground or to hang from another object.
Passe muraille [pas my.ʁaɪ] Wall climb, wall pass Overcoming a wall, usually by use of a kick off the wall to transform forward momentum into upward momentum. A passe muraille with two hand touches, for instance one touch on the top of a wall and another grabbing the top of the railing of the wall, is called a "Dyno".
Passement [pas.mɑ̃] Vault General term of overcoming an obstacle by vaulting.
Demitour [dəmi tuʁ] Half Turn A vault involving a 180° turn; literally "half turn." This move is used to place yourself hanging from the other side of an object in order to shorten a drop or prepare for a jump.
Reverse A vault involving a 360° rotation such that the traceur's back faces forward as they pass the obstacle. The purpose of the rotation is ease of technique in the case of otherwise awkward body position or momentum prior to the vault.
Planche [plɑ̃ʃ] Muscle up or Climb-Up To get from a hanging position (wall, rail, branch, arm jump, etc) into a position where your upper body is above the obstacle, supported by the arms. This then allows for you to climb up onto the obstacle and continue.
Roulade [ʁu.lad] Roll A forward roll where the hands, arms and diagonal of the back contact the ground. Used primarily to transfer the momentum/energy from jumps.
Saut de bras [so d bra] Arm jump To land on the side of an obstacle in a hanging/crouched position, the hands gripping the top edge, holding the body, ready to perform a planche.
Saut de chat [so d ʃa] Cat jump/pass To dive forward over an obstacle so that the body becomes horizontal, push off with the hands and tuck the legs, such that the body is brought back to a vertical position, ready to land.
Saut de fond [so d fɔ̃] Drop Literally 'jump to the ground' / 'jump to the floor'. To jump down, or drop down from something.
Saut de détente Gap jump To jump from one place/object to another, over a gap/distance. This technique is most often followed with a roll.
Saut de précision [so d presiziɔ̃] Precision jump To jump from one object to a precise spot on another object.
Tic Tac [tik tak] Tic Tac To kick off a wall in order to overcome another obstacle or gain height to grab something.
Parkour is a physical activity that is very difficult to categorize. It is definitely not an extreme sport, but an art that resembles martial arts. However, most traceurs are content to simply put parkour in its own category: "parkour is parkour".
The most characteristic aspect of parkour is efficiency. The basic meaning of this is that a traceur must not merely move as fast as they can, but move in a way that is the least energy-consuming and simultaneously the most direct. In addition, since parkour's unofficial motto is être et durer (to be and to last), efficiency also involves avoiding injuries, short-term or long-term.
According to founder David Belle, the spirit of parkour is guided in part by the notions of "escape" and "reach", that is, the idea of using physical agility and quick thinking to get out of difficult situations, and to be able to go anywhere that one desires.
Inspiration for parkour came from many sources, the foremost being the 'Natural Method of Physical Culture' developed by George Hébert in the early twentieth century. French soldiers in Vietnam were inspired by Hébert's work and created what is now known as parkour. David Belle was introduced to the art as well as Hébert's methode naturelle by his father, Raymond Belle, a French soldier who practiced the two disciplines. The word parkour derives from parcours du combattant, the obstacle courses of Hébert's method and a classic of military training. The younger Belle had participated in activities such as martial arts and gymnastics, and sought to apply his athletic prowess in a manner that would have practical use in life.
After moving to Lisses, Belle continued his journey with others. "From then on we developed," says Foucan in Jump London, "And really the whole town was there for us; there for free running. You just have to look, you just have to think, like children." This, as he describes, is "the vision of Parkour".
Over the years as dedicated practitioners improved their skills, their moves continued to grow in magnitude, so that building-to-building jumps and drops of over a story became common in media portrayals, often leaving people with a slanted view on the nature of parkour. In fact, ground-based movement is much more common than anything involving rooftops.
The journey of parkour from the Parisian suburbs to its current status as a widely practiced activity outside of France created splits among the originators. The founders of parkour started out in a group named the Yamakasi, but later separated due to disagreements over what David Belle referred to as "prostitution of the art," the production of a feature film starring the Yamakasi in 2001. Sébastien Foucan, David Belle, were amongst those who split at this point. The name 'Yamakasi' is taken from Lingala, a language spoken in the Congo, and means strong spirit, strong body, strong man.
Basic movements
Synonym Description
French English
Atterrissage or réception Landing Bending the knees when toes make contact with ground (never land flat footed always land on toes).
Équilibre Balance Walking or crawling along the crest of an obstacle; literally "balance."
Équilibre de chat Cat balance Quadrupedal movement along the crest of an obstacle.
Franchissement [fʁɑ̃.ʃis.mɑ̃] Underbar, jump through Jumping or swinging through a gap between obstacles; literally "to cross" or "to break through."
Lâché [la.ʃe] Dismount, swinging jump Hanging drop; lacher literally meaning "to let go." To hang or swing (on a bar, on a wall, on a branch) and let go, dropping to the ground or to hang from another object.
Passe muraille [pas my.ʁaɪ] Wall climb, wall pass Overcoming a wall, usually by use of a kick off the wall to transform forward momentum into upward momentum. A passe muraille with two hand touches, for instance one touch on the top of a wall and another grabbing the top of the railing of the wall, is called a "Dyno".
Passement [pas.mɑ̃] Vault General term of overcoming an obstacle by vaulting.
Demitour [dəmi tuʁ] Half Turn A vault involving a 180° turn; literally "half turn." This move is used to place yourself hanging from the other side of an object in order to shorten a drop or prepare for a jump.
Reverse A vault involving a 360° rotation such that the traceur's back faces forward as they pass the obstacle. The purpose of the rotation is ease of technique in the case of otherwise awkward body position or momentum prior to the vault.
Planche [plɑ̃ʃ] Muscle up or Climb-Up To get from a hanging position (wall, rail, branch, arm jump, etc) into a position where your upper body is above the obstacle, supported by the arms. This then allows for you to climb up onto the obstacle and continue.
Roulade [ʁu.lad] Roll A forward roll where the hands, arms and diagonal of the back contact the ground. Used primarily to transfer the momentum/energy from jumps.
Saut de bras [so d bra] Arm jump To land on the side of an obstacle in a hanging/crouched position, the hands gripping the top edge, holding the body, ready to perform a planche.
Saut de chat [so d ʃa] Cat jump/pass To dive forward over an obstacle so that the body becomes horizontal, push off with the hands and tuck the legs, such that the body is brought back to a vertical position, ready to land.
Saut de fond [so d fɔ̃] Drop Literally 'jump to the ground' / 'jump to the floor'. To jump down, or drop down from something.
Saut de détente Gap jump To jump from one place/object to another, over a gap/distance. This technique is most often followed with a roll.
Saut de précision [so d presiziɔ̃] Precision jump To jump from one object to a precise spot on another object.
Tic Tac [tik tak] Tic Tac To kick off a wall in order to overcome another obstacle or gain height to grab something.
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