New Yorker Festival 2007: Parkour with David Belle

Parkour New York: David Belle talks with Alec Wilkinson
David Belle will discuss, and demonstrate, parkour, the sport he created. Parkour is a system of leaps, vaults, rolls, and landings designed to help a person surmount any obstacles in his path.

David Belle moved to Lisses, a suburb of Paris, at the age of fourteen. Inspired by his father, an acrobat and fireman, and by the French sports theorist Georges Hébert, he began performing stunts on a nearby climbing wall. Through online videos, his sport, whose name he coined, caught on internationally. He has performed in Madagascar, Italy, Germany, and Portugal and will appear in the upcoming film "Babylon A.D."

Alec Wilkinson has been a staff writer for The New Yorker since 1980. He is the author of seven books, including "My Mentor," "Mr. Apology," and, most recently, "The Happiest Man in the World: An Account of the Life of Poppa Neutrino," parts of which first appeared in the magazine. "No Obstacles," his piece on parkour and David Belle, appeared in the April 16th Journeys issue.

Category:

Sports

Tags:

• Parkour
• David
• Belle
• New
• Yorker
• Festival
• York
• Alec
• Wilkinson

[brakoholic]

David Belle named the discipline Parkour, started the movement, and has been far more vocal and active in preserving its philosophy than any other practitioner so I'd say if he wants to do a backflip off a wall (the only inefficient move in the clip), that's probably his prerogative. Knowing producers, he was probably asked/begged/forced to do the flip in the first place.

[nippster96]

how can he still be doing this stuff at 37!

[DennisL0L]

" the sport he created. "? he didn't create parkour, parkour has been around for quite some time

[DennisL0L]

@TheS2pidmuffin with a couple of safety cables, and mattresses

[FoxTrot6006]

@Ws69Krap Heureusement qu'il ne parle pas anglais tu veux dire ^^, enfin un français qui n'a pas peur de parler français à l'étranger !!!

[TheS2pidmuffin]

@nippster96 how can jackie chan do this at 60

[luktheduk68]

first guy looked like marcus mumford!

[MrOnToYou10]

@nippster96 cuz he is the best

[phobism]

@brakoholic ezio was before him

[holyRAWBERRY6]

i love the ad at 2:37

[TheWolfPackGamers]

@nippster96 age is not important in parkour:)

[Flat0506313609]

@nippster96 He's fucking fit man, his body is ripped!! I bet he'll still be able to do this in his late 40's