Parkour EXPO is building a second gym in Geneva

: Published: 29 November 2021

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When we found out that there was a new parkour sporting center opening in the Geneva area, we had to ask Jesse Peveril to tell us more about it. Parkours a training discipline where your aim is to get from one point to another in the fastest and most efficient way possible through of obstacle course of walls and ramps and ledges, without the use of extra equipment. Read on to find out about the terrific prize that Jesse is offering our readers.

Jesse admits that this has been a product of many many years of passion and commitment to a sport that he loves and practises for most of his life. Being able to build a dedicated gym to have people come in and experience and share the sport of parkour is a beautiful thing to him.

Parkour is for anyone who likes to jump, climb, move and have fun doing parkour, no minimum or maximum age! A version of parkours that can benefit the older generation through mobility workshops to help keep strength, balance and coordination is something you might never have thought existed!

Jesse, why did you start? What has been the inspiration?
I started parkour 16 years ago and spent a good amount of time as a professional athlete competing internationally; after stopping competitions it felt like the right next step in my career.

I also spent a lot of time visiting parkour gyms around the world, so a lot of the inspiration from our setup is based on those.

I am Swiss/Canadian, born in Halifax, Nova Scotia. My mom moved to Geneva with me and my little brother when I was 10, we both did public school for a couple months before my mom decided that she wasn't happy with the education given here so she home-schooled us for 3 years before we went back to public school, afterwards I tried a lot of different pathways such as ECG, apprentice chef, psychology but I would constantly skip school to go do parkour instead so none of those led to anything. In the end I've had quite a successful career in the sport so I guess it was the right thing to do! After about 10 years of competitions, appearances, events and workshops around the world I finally decided to settle down a bit more and that's when I got my Swiss citizenship and started the Parkour EXPO project.

Is this a project you have been working on for a long time?
I started this project in March of 2020, somehow things moved very quickly and we already opened the first gym in September 2020 in Morges, even though the pandemic hit!

What is the biggest obstacle you have had to overcome?
I was working a full-time job as a security agent at the Geneva Airport while I was trying to get this project moving; being on night shifts was the hardest part for me. I worked from 20h to 04h in the morning, home to sleep until 11h, from midday to 19h I would go work on the parkour gym, building obstacles, paperwork, designing, organizing deliveries, then back to the airport for another night shift! It seemed like a marathon but life trains you for moments like these. I can use all this knowledge now to put into building more centers!

What are your plans for the future?
Right now our biggest project is to open up our second location in Geneva, it's going to be even bigger and better and we're really happy to announce that our crowdfunding went really well! The money raised will help finance the purchase of materials such as wood, metal bars, paint, tools, space planning, and labor.

So now the next step is to lock-in the location and start building our set! As soon as we have signed our lease, we will announce where and when they can partake in the newest parkour center in the area.

What is your favourite product you offer and why?
Our parkour classes, it's the bedrock of our gyms, with our qualified coaches and teaching methods we make parkour accessible to everyone, no matter the age! It uses mind strength as much as physical and people are always surprised at what they can achieve. It is very satisfying to see their progress and we have an amazing team that is so dedicated.

Do you offer camps during the school holidays?
Yes we always have camps running during the school holidays. They last a week and are from 9h30-16h30; the kids usually spend the first half of the day at our gym and the second half the coaches will take them out to explore a bit more and try to apply the moves they learned in an outdoor environment.

Here is what others are saying about Parkour Expo Morges
Dennis - A magnificent parkour gym suitable for all ages! Really great activity for children and young teens.
Nicolas - Excellent parkour park! Solid and creative constructions.
Polina - First parkour park in French-speaking Switzerland! Great project! Can't wait to start classes.

Parkour EXPO is kindly offering one knowitall.ch reader a family package 2 adults and 2 children (value Fr. 70.-) once the new Geneva location is open. Just fill out this form and answer this question: What is Parkour?

Only one entry per email is allowed. The competition closes at midnight on Thursday, 9 December 2021. The names of all those submitting correct answers will be placed into the digital hat and the winners' name drawn at random on Friday, 10 December 2021. The winner will be notified by email. No cash equivalent of prizes is permitted.

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