Parkour at the SC Bayer Uerdingen club

Krefeld clubs and fringe sports
:
The most spectacular way from A to B

–

Only the jumps and figures that have been safely practiced indoors are then tried out on the street.
Photo: Marcel Nguyen /SC Bayer 05

–
–

Serie Krefeld Parkour is a popular sport, especially among younger people. It’s not just about overcoming walls, railings or heights as quickly as possible, but also as elegantly, controlled – and safely as possible.

Establishing a sport from scratch and leading it to success – that rarely works. Dennis Gerritzen from SC Bayer 05 Uerdingen knows this from experience, and yet he can report on such a success story, namely the development of the parkour department of the sports club. It’s the story of a few boys who are doing a voluntary social year (FSJ) at SC Bayer 05, who have an idea, start a project – “and got an opportunity that they use,” says Gerritzen.

–

The Union All of this happened in 2013 and 2014, when those FSJ students who had been training parkour on the street up until then suggested it as a project. “All participants in the FSJ program have to set up such a project,” says Gerritzen. “However, this one came out of nowhere and was a complete success.” Almost 20 people quickly found themselves wanting to take part. Gerritzen helped establish contact with schools, and the FSJ students Marcel Nguyen and King Minh Tang told them what Parkour is. “A lot of people wanted to get involved right away. First there were AGs at the schools. Today everything takes place here in the club at SC Bayer 05 as an independent department.”

Parkour – what is it? The younger generation probably knows what Parkour is, the older ones maybe not. This sport is about using your body to get from A to B as quickly or elegantly as possible. For this purpose, obstacles are set up with everything that the sports hall has to offer. “We’re mixing in two other independent sports,” explains Gerritzen: In parkour, you have to get from A to B as quickly and in a straight line – “it doesn’t have to look good,” explains the athlete. With so-called freerunning (translated “free running”), it gets more elegant: the athletes incorporate screws, somersaults and other figures into the run. Tricking is less about the obstacles that don’t have to be in this discipline; it’s more about acrobatics. “Most athletes meet in the discipline of freerunning. Unfortunately, it’s almost exclusively a boy’s sport, with more girls doing parkour in Fischeln.” SC Bayer 05 cooperates with its trainers with other clubs that don’t have their own trainers.

discipline and teamwork The early days of the department was also a phase of self-discovery. “In the beginning, the athletes climbed everything they could find, for example the basketball hoops,” remembers Gerritzen. But after the most important rules were established, things got better and better. “Here in the hall you can set up obstacles and try out figures that you wouldn’t dare to try on the street.” The parkour athletes don’t measure distances in meters, but in steps, says Gerritzen, and ask themselves, for example with jumps: which ones Measured against my own steps, can I safely manage the distance? “One maybe they wouldn’t try outside. It has to work for sure.”

–

Safety plays a big role in this sport to avoid getting injured. “That’s why the children don’t start with us until they’re about ten years old,” says Gerritzen, “since they should already have a certain understanding of danger.” In doing so, they take particular care of the beginners, who learn from the better ones. “Unlike most sports, there isn’t just one character. There are different ways of what you can do and how. And it’s not about performance. It’s a way of life – and that’s what makes the sport so successful.”

–

All available sports equipment is used in the SC Bayer 05 hall to create obstacles and jump ramps.
*Photo: Marcel Nguyen /SC Bayer 05*

–

Fast paths and fast success After a few hours of training, the first successes already appear, says Gerritzen. “When you can then overcome the first plateaus, it becomes challenging.” Exactly how quickly success comes depends on your age, the athlete admits: “I’m 30 years old and I need a little longer. The younger ones, on the other hand, are even less afraid and achieve success faster. Still, every age progresses quickly in the beginning.”

–

Little equipment, many advantages You don’t need much for training: comfortable sportswear and shoes are enough. Sport gives you a lot in return: “You get an incredible awareness of what your body can do,” says Gerritzen. This body awareness helps you to build a healthy self-confidence. And the costs are manageable too: you can be there for around 20 euros a month (basic fee plus department fee).

–

Leave a Comment Cancel reply