Noa Diorgina inspires Kenyan Parkour athletes to new heights
By Lucky Oluoch, September 25, 2023Noa Diorgina, the 2022 World Games Parkour freestyle winner, visited Kenya to lead a Parkour workshop organised by Red Bull Kenya.
During the workshop, Kenyan Parkour athletes received training from experienced athletes, aiming to improve their skills and promote the sport.
Diorgina, a 19-year-old sensation in the world of Parkour, expressed her belief in the potential of Kenyan Parkour talents. She emphasized the need for extensive practice to reach competition levels and called for better infrastructure to attract more athletes to the sport.
Diorgina highlighted that Parkour, though not widely known, has immense potential globally, and initiatives like this workshop can help increase its recognition.
She averred: “I have witnessed a lot of talent from Kenyan Parkour athletes. All they need now is to practice a lot to achieve competition levels. Parkour is not necessarily a new sport, it is just that it is not popular across the world and it is initiatives like this that will make it known.”
The event drew a relatively small number of female Parkour athletes in Kenya. Diorgina’s participation and international recognition were seen as efforts to encourage more women to join the sport. She also shared her aspiration to compete in the upcoming Olympic Games, aiming to build on her 2022 World Games title.
Jason Paul, a German-born Parkour athlete with two decades of experience, commended the resilience of the local Parkour community despite challenges in the country. He noted the workshop’s significance for the development of Parkour in Kenya, praising the athletes’ freestyle moves and landings.
“I can’t rate the talent that I have seen here today with what I see internationally because it is still growing. I have however seen good freestyle fluid moves, perfect and landings today. If they continue to practice, they have a future in the sport,” he stated.
The workshop concluded with a freestyle competition, with Brian Otieno emerging as the overall winner. Brian expressed gratitude to Red Bull for organizing the workshop and acknowledged the importance of having world champions like Noa Diorgina in Kenya to promote the sport and advocate for better infrastructure.
Local Parkour Coach Adam Hussein, based at the Dojo Wellness Center in Nairobi where the workshop took place, urged the government to recognize street youth freestyle Parkour enthusiasts and invest in the sport.
Hussein shared his journey from practising Parkour on the streets to becoming a coach, highlighting the potential for positive change in the lives of street youth through the sport.