Yamakasi are a French group of practitioners of parkour, l'art du déplacement, and other types of acrobatics. ^[1] But, the term 'yamakasi' is also used to call a particular form of a performance in order to distinguish it from other similar activities mentioned above. ^[1]

Overview

The art originally termed Art du Deplacement, now also referred to as parkour, was founded in France in the 1980s by a group of nine young men who called themselves The Yamakasi. Yamakasi is a Lingala word meaning loosely 'Strong Man, Strong Spirit', and summed up the original and still core aim of the discipline - to be a strong individual: physically, mentally and ethically.
The Yamakasi founders were Yann Hnautra, Chau Belle, David Belle, Laurent Piemontesi, Sébastien Foucan, Guylain N'Guba Boyeke, Charles Perriere, Malik Diouf and Williams Belle.

Etymology

The word yamakasi is taken from the Lingala language, which is spoken in both Congo states (the Republic of the Congo and the Democratic Republic of the Congo). Ya makási can mean "strong body", "strong spirit", "strong person."

Etymology

The word yamakasi is taken from the Lingala language, which is spoken in both Congo states (the Republic of the Congo and the Democratic Republic of the Congo). Ya makási can mean "strong body", "strong spirit", "strong person."

References in popular culture

• The characters in the 2001 French film Yamakasi used parkour to steal money from seven rich people to get enough money to afford a heart replacement surgery for a child.
• The Yamakasi group return in 2004 with Les Fils Du Vent, sometimes wrongly labeled as a sequel [1] The Yamakasi move to Bangkok and battle the Yakuza and their Thai associates who are attempting to take over the city. Châu Belle Dinh, a member of the Yamakasi, who plays 'Baseball' in the first film; switches sides to play a bad guy with good intentions.
• ESPN did a parkour report in 2007 with Laurent Piemontesi and Châu Belle Dinh members of Yamakasi.^[2]
• Yamakasi also used in a fight scene in the tamil movie Ayan.^[3]