28-year-old man promotes the sport of parkour in Chongqing

Chongqing spider-man climbs over walls and roofs freehand, better than a cat

Pu Xiao, who lives in the University Town, Shapingba District, can climb over a four-meter-high wall freehand, and make a rotation on the vertical wall without using any tool. Pu can also overcome obstacles without putting his legs on the floor, and leap between two low-rise buildings like a cat. He is therefore known as the Chongqing version of "spider-man".

28-year-old man promotes the sport of parkour in Chongqing

The "kong vault is my favorite action." On the afternoon of November 9, Pu practiced the "kong vault" at a derelict depot four kilometers from Nanan District. He sprinted from a distance of five meters before vaulting over a meter-high wooden shelf, and then vaulted over another wooden shelf, supporting his body weight with hands. His feet did not touch the floor during the entire process.

28-year-old Pu works at the Compass Training School in the University Town, and is from Suining, Sichuan Province. He said that "Paoku" is translated from the French word Parkour. Originating in France in the 1980s, Parkour literally means "free running": a whole city can serve as a Parkour training ground, and any wall and roof can be overcome. Having watched the French film Banlieue 13 starring the French actor David Belle in 2005, Pu was enchanted by David's actions, and decided to learn Parkour. He downloaded a large number of videos of foreign traceurs from the Internet, and then imitated them. He started training by climbing the lowest walls, and finally learnt how to hang on a wall after practicing for a week. Later, he learnt the "cat balance", the" kong vault", the "wall spin" and other more difficult actions by himself.

"Many people laugh at me." Pu said that many onlookers gather when he practices Parkour at the university. After watching for a while, an elderly woman passing by said, "That boy is so mischievous. He is old enough to know he should not climb walls." Hearing this, Pu did not know whether to laugh or cry. Many young people joined Pu after watching him practice. Among them is 20-year-old Xiao Hang. Xiao Hang is getting stronger thanks to practicing Parkour, and is no longer afraid of pain. In early 2009, Pu set up the CCParkour Club, and over 100 young people practice Parkour with him.

Pu has been hurt many times when practicing Parkour. He has a scar between his thumb and index finger after receiving about ten stitches. However, pain did not stop Pu, and Parkour has become part of his life over the four-year period. Pu reminded people that though Parkour moves are cool, you can only manage to do them after practicing thousands of times. "People who have not received any professional training should not try to copy them."

Translated by LOTO