Parkour Was Born in Lisses

A town as a playground

Parkour did not start in a stadium or a gym. It grew up in Lisses and nearby Evry, quiet suburbs south of Paris, where a group of teenagers began treating walls, railings, steps and concrete structures as an obstacle course. They trained for hours, often at night, repeating the same small movements until they were smooth and controlled.

David Belle, born in 1973, moved to Lisses as a boy and became one of the central figures. He had grown up hearing stories about his father, Raymond Belle, a highly skilled firefighter in Paris, whose own training in strength, agility and rescue skills shaped the family's ideas about being useful and capable.

Where the name came from

The word parkour comes from the French parcours, a route or course. During David Belle's early film work, his friend Hubert Kounde suggested swapping the c for a k and dropping the silent s to make the word look stronger and more dynamic. People who practise it became known as traceurs, or traceuses for women, from the French verb tracer, which carries the sense of moving quickly.

The early idea was simple: get from one point to another as efficiently as possible, using only the body. Flashy tricks were not the point. Control, repetition and honesty about your own limits were.

Training values

The founders talked about being strong in body and mind, about humility and about looking after each other. Training was slow and patient. A movement was practised low and close to the ground long before anyone tried it anywhere higher, and nobody was pushed into something they were not ready for.

Many traceurs also care about the places they train. The local community has organised clean-ups and repainting days in Lisses, a reminder that parkour spots are shared public spaces.

From a suburb to the world

Through films, documentaries and online videos in the 2000s, parkour spread across the globe. Today there are coached classes, purpose-built parks and international competitions on every continent.

The athletes you see in those videos have trained for many years. Everything on this page is performed by trained professionals. Please do not try to copy it. If parkour inspires you, start at a proper parkour gym with qualified coaches.

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