Sebastien Foucan, the creator of the Free running community.
Freerunning (often abbreviated FR or Free running) has multiple meanings in the urban movement community. The term "Freerunning" was originally coined during the filming of "Jump London" by Sébastien Foucan; it was originally intended to be used as an English translation of Parkour. However, after the split in ideals between David Belle and Sébastien Foucan, it Foucan adopted the name for the emerging art, while Belle choose to keep using the term Parkour. Freerunning; although often used interchangeably with the word Parkour, has come to mean the artistic expression using the movements of the human body rather than focusing on efficiency and swiftness. Much debate occurs on the subject of definitions.
History[]
- Main article: Lé Parkour#History
Philosophy[]
Many of the philosophies behind Free running are very similar to that of Parkour. For example, both promote self and environmental awareness and preservation and both are non-competitive. Free running, though it uses many of the same movements are Parkour, uses a different view point for the basis of training. In Free running, a Free runner uses movement in an artistic and self-expressive way. Thus, the combinations of these movements do not have to be the most energy efficient or swiftest, but ones that the Free runner believes is most self expressive. Free running thus lacks a large amount of the discipline that falls into Parkour, because while traceurs and trace uses train to become stronger and better with navigation, Free runners train and learn more skills so that they can find the perfect movements to express themselves with. Tricking and acrobatics are accepted by the Free running community because, unlike with Parkour, the efficiency of these moves is irrelevant. Many traceurs and traceurs who learn flips agree that though it is not Parkour, it's still 'fun' or liberating. Thus, many people train both Parkour and Free-running because both styles offer an element that is attractive to them.
Freerunning Movements[]
No definitive moves list could ever be created for Freerunning (since the idea behind it is to be creative and express yourself), however, these are some of the most common:
Freerunning Organizations / Notable People[]
- Sebastien Foucan
- Ryan Doyle
- Daniel Cabala
- Damien Walters
- Timothy Sheffield
- Urban Free flow
- World Freerunning and Parkour Federation (WFPF)
Freerunning in the Media[]
Movies, TV series and documentaries[]
- From Here To There (2015)
- Ultimate Parkour Challenge (premiered 2009)
- Jump London (2003)
- Jump Britain (2005)
Music Videos[]
- Knights of Bostonia (2010)