We’ve been loving the videos you guys have been sending us in to have a look at through our ‘Share with the WFPF’ page. We had one particular video share by Ihab Yassin, from Germany, which we found to be truly a representation of the real spirit of parkour, overcoming obstacles. After taking some time to get in touch with Ihab, we sat down to have a chat and aim to understand more about who he is, his condition and his outlook on life.

So Ihab, tell us a bit about yourself!
Hello. My name is Ihab Yassin and I am 18 years old. I come from Mainz, Germany and I do Parkour for 2 years.

How did you get involved with Parkour?
I get involved with Parkour when I was 13 years old, because a friend showed me a Parkour video.

What was it like to begin training?
I started to do Parkour but my first moves were only basics, therefore wall-ups or precision jumps. My first weeks were very difficult, because at the one side it was something new for me but on the other side; I have a little ‘handicap’.

Can you explain to us a bit more about your particular circumstance?
I have ‘Achondroplasia‘, which is a form of dwarfism. That means I am a little person. But that didn’t’ stop me to do Parkour, because at my opinion everyone can do Parkour, not matter how tall he is or what a disease he have. A perfect example for this is Wolfy (Wolf Renaissance), who really inspires me. He is also not much bigger than me, but he does also Parkour.

How has this affected your training?
So I went as often as possible outside to train and to skill my basics and better my best. Between November 2012 and June 2013, I had to take a break, because I had an injury at my back and I had to have an operation (February 2013). It was such a hard time. Not being able to do Parkour was the biggest punishment in my life! But after my break, my motivation was so big that I trained harder than ever and improved my skills.

How have you found being a part of the Parkour community?
Today Parkour is for me an attitude to life, because when training I can I be myself. I got acquainted with many people, also with new friends, who are today very important for me, and shared my experiences with them. Most of them said to me: “I have respect for you, that you do Parkour, even though you have a handicap”. That makes very happy to hear.

Whats next for you?
I know that I haven’t yet reached my maximum, so I’ll train further harder and harder to reach it.

You can see more videos of Ihab over at his Youtube Channel.