Australian Parkour Association
Encyclopedia
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| Abbreviation: | APA |
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| Legal Status: | Incorporated Association |
| Formation: | 2006 |
| Membership: | 133 (2009) |
| President: | Matthew 'Chippa' Campbell |
| Affiliations: | Sports Health Check |
| Australian Sports Commission Australian Sports Commission The Australian Sports Commission is the governing body responsible for distributing funds and providing strategic guidance for sporting activity in Australia. It is an agency of the Government of Australia within the portfolio of Health and Ageing... |
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| Vic Health | |
| website: | http://www.parkour.asn.au/ |
The Australian Parkour Association (APA) is an incorporated association
Associations Incorporation Act 1981 (Victoria)
Associations Incorporation Act 1981 is the act of the Parliament of Victoria in Australia to make provision for the incorporation of certain associations, for the regulation of these incorporated associations....
concerned with the promotion and teaching of parkour
Parkour
Parkour is a method of movement focused on moving around obstacles with speed and efficiency. Originally developed in France, the main purpose of the discipline is to teach participants how to move through their environment by vaulting, rolling, running, climbing and jumping...
throughout Australia. At present, the APA has 133 active members, while many times that number have attended or regularly attend APA-run parkour classes.
Purpose
The APA enunciates its purpose as to nurture the development of parkour in Australia and seeks to achieve this through a number of means. Primary amongst which include, teaching parkour through the provision of classes and workshops, acting as a representative body for those who practice parkour and advancing positive portrayals of parkour in the media.Formation/Origins
In November 2005 the idea of forming a national association to represent parkour in Australia began to be discussed amongst a group of Melbourne Traceurs. One catalyst had been the threat of legal actionAustralian tort law
Tort law in Australia is the body of precedents and, to a lesser extent, legislation, that together define the operation of tort law in Australia. A tort is a civil wrong, other than a breach of contract. Tort law is a way in which the law can interfere with relationships between private...
leveled against several members of the Melbourne parkour community – despite their being unconnected with the incident. As events were clarified amongst the potential plaintiffs, threat of legal action faded. However, the possibility of lawsuits left an indelible impression upon those involved. The APA now provides members and instructors with “protection of the members and office holders against personal liability for debts and other legal obligations of the organisation.”
Simultaneously, there was also concern that parkour was being inaccurately promulgated in Australia. Globally, there has been significant controversy regarding the philosophical underpinnings of parkour. Amongst those who would later form the APA, there was a strong adherence to the non-competitive and altruistic principles laid down by parkour founder David Belle
David Belle
David Belle is well known as the founder of Parkour. Belle founded Parkour based on his training and the teachings from his father Raymond Belle. The discipline has since spread around the world and now has adherents in virtually every country...
. According to current APA president Mathew “Chippa” Campbell:
Following discussions initially localised in Melbourne, similar groups in Sydney and Canberra were contacted and quickly included, their contributions refining and completing the concept. On the 21st June 2006 the Australian Parkour Association (APA) was formed and registered nationally in August 2006.
Teaching
Pursuant to the APA's aims, weekly classes accessible to the general public are run in several major cities throughout Australia. At present the APA runs classes in Melbourne, Sydney, Canberra, Perth, Brisbane, Adelaide and Newcastle.Pursuant to being a registered incorporation under Australian law, the APA is a non-profit organisation
Non-profit organization
Nonprofit organization is neither a legal nor technical definition but generally refers to an organization that uses surplus revenues to achieve its goals, rather than distributing them as profit or dividends...
, with most instructors and assistant instructors volunteering their time. In addition to weekly classes the APA has been involved in organising workshops for disadvantaged and at-risk youths.
The APA and the Media
In furtherance of the APA's stated objective of positively and accurately representing parkour to the wider community, members have been involved in numerous media appearances. In September 2007, members were involved in a high profile piece for 60 Minutes, which was broadcast nationally during Sunday prime time on Channel 9. Following the 60 Minutes piece, numbers at classes experienced an explosion. Many of the interviews with the APA were not included and the final piece was not as the APA had hoped and expected.In addition to this involvement, the APA has contributed to numerous newspaper, radio and local television features, at times being the central focus.