Parkour is a pretty simple concept – get from point A to point B in the most efficient way possible by using your surroundings. Think of it as a creative obstacle course. It’s also the fastest growing extreme sport in the world. “I disagree that it is an extreme sport,” says Matt Talbot owner of Breathe Parkour in northeast Calgary. “It’s only an extreme sport if you make it extreme. We are much more mainstream than we were five years ago.” That’s because of the work of his organization and others like it across Canada.
Breathe Parkour started in 2010 when a group of Parkour enthusiasts were researching what was happening with their sport around the world. They found only a handful of resources, so they decided to start their own by launching a magazine. That led to sponsoring professionals to do corporate events and making up a curriculum to help others teach the sport. “We realized we had all these pieces and the last piece would be a gym. We needed to have a house,” says Matt. In March of 2014 that house was built, the largest Parkour facility in Alberta.
