Intro: Tricking is the informal name of a relatively new underground alternative sport movement, combining martial arts, gymnastics, breakdancing and other performing arts to create an "aesthetic blend of flips, kicks, and twists." Tricking incorporates a variety of moves from different arts such as the backflip from gymnastics, 540 kick from Taekwondo, butterfly twist from Wushu and double leg from Capoeira. Tricking is recognizable by its flashy kicks, complex flips and twists, and its highly stylized movements which separate it from other arts. An individual who practices tricking is typically referred to as a "trickster" or "tricker". History: Tricking has only recently come into its own as a recognized activity. Although the various skills practiced in Tricking have existed much longer, a variety of theories have been put forth as to where the term originated. As early as the 1990s, martial artists on the competitive level began incorporating more advanced techniques into their forms. Ernie Reyes Sr. formed the WCAT (West Coast Action Team), and innovators on the competitive circuit included individuals like, Daniel Sterling, Matt Emig, Marc Canonizado, Steve Terada, Anis Cheurfa, Sammy Vasquez, Manny Brown, David Douglas, Charmichael Simon, Chris Cassamassa, Hosung Pak, Anthony Atkins, Chris Cella, and Jon Valera. As the techniques being executed at competitions became more advanced, a newer generation of martial artists emerged, one-upping each other with newer, flashier, and more complex movements. NASKA (North American Sport Karate Association), witnessing the surge of non-martial arts related moves, and hearing the cries of traditional martial artists, was forced to rearrange and reassign divisions multiple times. This meant including or excluding certain movements or tricks in each division. With the internet revolution at the beginning of the 21st century, Tricking began reaching a wider audience. Websites like Jubei's MA Zone, the Yellwboy website (which are no longer online) as well as Bilang.com, Dogentricks.com and TricksTutorials.com allowed this new trend of martial arts competitors and tricksters to come together for a free exchange of ideas. Towards the end of 2003, the online tricking community was well-developed, bringing tricksters from across the globe together. With the rise of YouTube.com, tricksters were able to share their videos with others and the world of tricking experienced a massive rise in popularity and interest. Terminology: The term "Tricking" originally stems from a variation of Martial Arts Tricks, which came from the original internet hub of Tricking, Bilang.com. Tricking has been referred to as extreme martial arts (XMA), though tricksters typically shy away from this due to negative connotations associated with the term in martial arts circles. The actual terminology used in tricking is a somewhat complex array of prefixes and suffixes denoting rotational degrees, stylistic flairs, setups, and technical arrangements. Words like swipe, gyro, cheat, pop, and hyper are all common and denote variations to basic moves. Progression: The main aim of tricking is to perform a visually impressive display of moves. Unlike many established sports, tricking has no formal rules or regulations, and there are no governing bodies that regulate the sport. Strictly speaking, participants are free to perform any kind of dramatic maneuver and call it a 'trick' - though there are certain moves which are generally accepted as tricking moves. Some tricksters (especially those who discover tricking through the Internet) tend to learn the easier moves first (such as the 540 Kick, Aerial, Kip-Up, and Backflip) and try to progress through a list of recognized tricks in the perceived order of difficulty. However, how difficult a trick is will vary from person to person; certain tricks may be inexplicably easier or harder than normal for a particular trickster to learn. Tricksters can be divided into different categories of style: some prefer performing mainly martial arts tricks (which almost always incorporate kicks into a trick), others mostly freestyle gymnastics and flips (mainly focus on doing multiple rotations and combining different types of rotations), but most tricksters mix a combination of all the disciplines. Trickers must train their bodies hard to be able to consistently perform their tricks at any time. Age groups: Trickers usually range in age from young teenagers to young adults. The only requirement to be able to Trick is a well-conditioned body in both strength and flexibility. Because of this, anyone who is in good physical shape can pick up tricking with some practice and possibly help from other trickers. Non-contact: This sport is almost completely non-contact. There is very little apparent competitiveness within the tricking community aside from being able to execute more difficult or more graceful moves than anyone else. Despite borrowing heavily from break-dancing, capoeira, gymnastics and wushu tricking rarely involves facing an 'opponent' or directly trying to make anyone look less able bodied than yourself (as both of the aforementioned sports rely heavily on). Another aspect of tricking that has been borrowed for break-dancing is the "battle." But, unlike breakdancing the battle in tricking is usually much less competitive. Many tricksters never feel the need for competition. The tricking bible from bilang.com has a small article on battling, but the rules are still not strictly set just like all aspects of tricking. Unlike formal breakdance, gymnastics, or martial arts competitions, gatherings of talented tricksters are more often geared towards education, as opposed to competition. Few popular tricking moves are executed in any true fighting style, and many 'tricks' are completely non-combatant to begin with. A large number of 'tricks' are variations of gymnastics moves or acrobatic feats which involve no kicks or advances on a target whatsoever. The only common tricks in which two people come into contact with each other are when one tricker uses another as a prop to jump/flip/handspring over, or when one tricker helps launch another tricker into a trick. This sport as of yet lacks a true 'sparring' element in its training and competitions, and most likely will not include one in the future as it would be nearly impossible to address safety concerns and contradictory to the nature of the sport. Training: Since tricking is still a new activity, specialized coached training is practically non-existent. Tricksters pursue the ability to perform the majority of their tricks on grass, regular flooring or even concrete. Mats, plyometric flooring, trampoline or jumping jamporees can be used at first to become familiar with the movements in a safer environment, with less impact strain. Practitioners usually come from various martial arts and gymnastics backgrounds or are self-taught. In addition to this, they will usually learn from friends who have more experience and have been training longer. Particularly in later years, it has been popular to form "Teams" among friends, groups of "Tricksters" with a group name, as a form of self-encouragement and to build self-identity as a "Trickster". It is also done so as to practice in a set group which people are comfortable with. For those that don't have a Tricking environment in which to learn, many train by aiming to reproduce moves in videos submitted to websites such as Club540, and Tricks Tutorials. Similarly, trainees may seek aid from tricking camps, such as those held by Loopkicks of San Jose. People that trick often do a lot of body conditioning as strength is a necessity. Flexibility training is often a good idea for trickers as many tricks and stunts become a lot easier and safer the more flexible you are. Another important point is landing lightly, the opposite of which results in numerous leg and ankle injuries during practice. Gatherings and camps: Tricking gatherings have taken place around the world, including Toronto, Rugby, Bergen, Bremen, Derby, Quebec, New York, Melbourne, California, and places around the UK. For some gatherings invitations are required, but otherwise, from beginner to experienced tricking veteran, everyone is welcome. Most of the info on each specific gathering (they happen on a yearly basis) can be found on the Tricks Tutorials forums. The first gathering took place in Toronto in 2003. This gathering started it all, in fact it led to many tricksters adopting the idea - such as Team FS holding their Maryland and New York gatherings. The concept has now spread to Europe, with gatherings in the UK and other European countries as well. Loopkicks, based out of San Jose, California, throws an annual tricking camp, drawing individuals from all over the world to meet with each other to create, learn, and inspire. Martial arts tricksters have numerous gatherings before and after tournaments for the various leagues. They normally consist of competitors finding some free space at the tournament location, forming a circle around the performing area, and taking turns performing tricks. The Charlie Lee Nationals in Reston, Virginia is a notable competition-based gathering that drew formally trained martial artists as well as enthusiasts.
Intro: Freerunning is a physical art, in which participants (freerunners) attempt to pass all obstacles in their path in a smooth and fluid way. Freerunners interact with their environment using movements such as vaulting, jumping, somersaults and other acrobatic movements, creating an athletic and aesthetically pleasing way of moving. It is commonly practiced at gymnasiums and in urban areas that are cluttered with obstacles. Overview: Founded by Sébastien Foucan and inspired by the similar art of displacement (parkour) which was founded by Foucan's childhood friend David Belle, free running embraces elements of tricking and street stunts which are considered by the parkour community to be inefficient and not parkour. Initially, the term freerunning was used interchangeably with parkour. However, as freerunners became interested in aesthetics as well as useful movement, the two became different disciplines. The term freerunning was created by Guillaume Pelletier and embraced by Foucan to describe his "way" of doing parkour. Foucan summarizes the goals of free running as using the environment to develop yourself and to always keep moving and not go backwards. While freerunning and parkour share many common techniques, they have a fundamental difference in philosophy and intention. The aims of parkour are reach, the ability to quickly access areas that would otherwise be inaccessible, and escape, the ability to evade pursuers, which means the main intention is to clear their objects as efficiently as they can while free running emphasises self development by "following your way". Foucan frequently mentions "following your way" in interviews and the Jump documentaries. He explains that everyone has their way of doing parkour and they shouldn't follow someone else's way of doing it, instead they should do it their way. Freerunning is commonly misinterpreted as being solely focused on aesthetics and the beauty of the certain vault, jump, etc. Although a lot of free runners choose to focus on aesthetics, that is just "their way", the goal however is still self development. The easiest way to explain the differences between the two activities is that in parkour you try to get from A to B in the most efficient and natural way, which could be exercised in case of a real threat, whereas in freerunning you may employ movements of your choosing. You might also do certain movements solely for their aesthetic value and the challenge of execution. Free running is essentially complete freedom of movement.
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