HISTORY OF MOVEMENT: Movement has been one of the man’s built-in locomotor skills, way before there were horse-drawn carriages and carts, then eventually cars, trucks and airplanes, for a person to move from one point to another. By mere hands and feet, man simply managed to travel and survive, by hunting for food and building shelter. And later on, conquering lands and building civilizations.

But it was before World War I, that a former French naval officer named Georges Hébert, during a visit to Africa, was impressed by the physical development and skills of the indigenous tribes that he met. During a volcanic eruption on May 8, 1902 in the town of Saint-Pierre, Martinique where he was stationed, his belief of using athletic skills not just to be strong, but to also be useful was reinforced as he coordinated the escape and rescue of some 700 people.

Method Naturelle according to Georges Hébert, is a methodical and continuous action, wherein a person develops one’s energy and skills for the well-being of others. He set up ten fundamental groups for his sessions: walking, running, jumping, quadrupedal movement, climbing, balancing, throwing, lifting, self-defense, and swimming which are part of the three main forces of his beliefs: energetic sense (courage, willpower, coolness, energy, and firmness), moral sense (honor, honesty, benevolence and assistance), and physical sense (muscles and breath).

Method Naturelle continued to expand during World War I and World War II, becoming the standard system of French military education and training. Thus, the development of the obstacle course by a Swiss architect for the military training and firefighter training that led to the development of civilian fitness trails and confidence courses. As it sought to develop one’s skills, combining with a good moral sense, by using the principal abilities of the human body.

1997 David Belle (who was influenced strongly by his father who was a exceptional and highly regarded firefighter in France), Sébastien Foucan, Yann Hnautra, Charles Perrière, Malik Diouf, Guylain N'Guba-Boyeke, Châu Belle-Dinh, and Williams Belle created the group called Yamakasi, whose name comes from the Lingala language of Congo, and means strong spirit, strong body, strong man, endurance. Belle and Foucan split up due to money and disagreements over the definition of parkour and its intentions/philosophies.

Born in a firefighter's family, David was influenced by stories of heroism. And was introduced to obstacle course training and méthode naturallé. He also participated in martial arts and gymnastics activities in seeking his love of freedom, action, and to develop his strength and dexterity to be useful in life, as his father had advised him. And up to this day continues to promote and teach Parkour as practical usefulness of the art of efficient movements.

Sebastien Foucan used the term Freerunning to easily communicate parkour to the English speaking countries, therefore developing a new discipline altogether, as it promotes a complete freedom of movement based on aesthetic form, beauty, and efficiency for the individual development, as practitioners seek to regain what was lost and appreciate the beauty of – human mobility.