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By Beth Webb
The world of sports has primarily been a boys one. Girls have managed to break into the mainstream, with our own women’s football and rugby teams. But what about the gritty, unkempt world of urban sport, and where do girls fit into it?
I can probably account for a lot of the female population when I say that parkour first came to my attention during a furious and undeniably sexy chase scene in Casino Royale back in 2006. A beautifully flustered Daniel Craig in hot pursuit of real life parkour pro Sebastien Foucan through a building site in Madagascar sent women mad, and parkour right into the spotlight of the British sports scene.
Many other’s first interest spouted from Jump London in 2005, a documentary covering the then underground sport and its followers over rooftops and stairwells in Britain’s biggest urban playground. Even Madonna has shown interest in the sport, casting free runners (Foucan included) to perform in her 2006 Confessions tour.
Parkour has become renowned as being great for toning muscles, as well as building up strength, flexibility and balance as well as improving your personal trust when it comes to your body and your judgements. The combination of sprinting, climbing, jumping and crawling is also considered one of the most complete forms of exercise.
The art of free running itself was discovered way back in 1902, when French navy officer Georges Hébert incorporated a method of movement oblivious to his surrounding when rescuing victims of a volcano in the Caribbean. His techniques were later copied by French soldiers in Vietnam.
The whole history; soldiers, war, Bond, screams testosterone. So where do girls fit into this exciting sport that seems to be taking over the world? It surely can’t be that difficult to throw yourself off a wall or swing through some railings? On the contrary, thinking doesn’t seem to come into it at all.
I met the Bournemouth Parkour Society on a crisp November Saturday morning. I was the only girl. My training started with a few simple leaps amongst a rock formation by the beach. I first observed from a distance, wondering what all the fuss was about. Based on what I had seen on the telly I was expecting a smooth, choreographed routine, possibly accompanied by some fancy lighting and racy music. This I considered an amateur performance, with a lot of hanging around. As I was beckoned to join in, I had to stop myself from strutting over, ready to do my bit for the girls.
I was instructed to leap from one rock to another one, about two feet away. Ben was the team’s organiser and had the job of showing me the ropes. He has been practising for over three years in his hometown of Croydon. I swung my arms, bent my knees, perfected a look of sexy determination on my face and jumped, landing less than half way from my intended destination. I felt confused and quite embarrassed; this was clearly a lot harder than I had first anticipated.
Six tries later I was still no closer to my target, and by now I had attracted an audience. Andy stepped in for a few words of advice. At only 16, he has been free running since he was 14, despite having shattered his back during practice. This was not a simple see and do process, and so we slowed down the pace, allowing me to jump from a further distance every time until I got there.
As we moved locations, you could almost hear the boys’ brains turning as they analysed their surroundings, seeing what they could get away with. It was like a being back in the playground as each boy laid out a new challenge for the team, daring them to take the risk. I wondered if whilst pushing themselves to keep up anyone had ever gotten seriously hurt.
“We were asked to perform a choreographed routine for a big firework display last year,” explained Sam, who pursued parkour two years ago when he decided to lose weight. “Our friend Mike decided to show off a bit and leapt off of a very high platform. He shattered both of his shins and hasn’t come back since.”
I certainly wasn’t in a position to be showing off, and after hearing a number of terror tales involving daring stunts and broken bones, I was reluctant to join back in...
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