Parkour is the sport of moving through your environment as quickly and efficiently as possible by running, jumping, climbing, and vaulting over obstacles. A person practicing parkour (called a traceur) might leap across gaps, vault over railings, scale walls, or drop from ledges, treating the urban landscape like a giant obstacle course.

Developed in France in the 1980s, parkour challenges athletes to see possibilities where others see barriers. Instead of walking around a bench, a traceur vaults over it. Instead of using stairs, they might jump between levels or climb walls. The goal is to find the most direct path from point A to point B, no matter what stands in the way.

Good parkour requires tremendous strength, balance, and spatial awareness. Traceurs train for years to perform moves safely, learning how to land properly to avoid injury and calculating which jumps they can actually make. While parkour videos can look dramatic and dangerous, serious practitioners emphasize discipline and knowing your limits.

You might see parkour performed in action movies, where stunt performers use these techniques to create thrilling chase scenes.