In the world of movement, few names resonate as powerfully as Mark Toorock, the visionary founder of American Parkour. Known to many as “M2,” Toorock’s journey from a restless youth to a global ambassador of parkour is a testament to the transformative power of passion, persistence, and play. His story is not just about vaulting over walls or scaling urban landscapes it’s about redefining how we see obstacles, both physical and mental, and inspiring countless others to do the same.
A Restless Beginning
Born in 1971, Mark Toorock’s early life was marked by a sense of displacement. Adopted as a child, he grappled with feelings of not quite fitting in, a sentiment that fueled a restless energy. “I was an angry, angry kid,” he once reflected in an interview, candidly sharing how his adoptive family’s love couldn’t fully erase the sting of feeling abandoned. Growing up in the United States, Toorock was far from the athletic archetype. He humorously recalls his three years in little league baseball, where he never once hit the ball, earning sympathetic sighs from the stands. Sports didn’t come naturally, and school wasn’t much better he dropped out of high school twice and college four times, chasing a sense of purpose that always seemed just out of reach.
That purpose began to take shape in his mid-20s when he discovered martial arts. It wasn’t just the physicality that drew him in; it was the discipline, the philosophy, and the chance to teach others. Coaching kids in martial arts, he found joy in helping them grow stronger in body and character. By his late 20s, Toorock had earned a second-degree black belt, but his hunger for new ways to move and connect with the world was far from satisfied.
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Discovering Parkour in London
The turning point came in 2002, when Toorock, then working as a technology manager for a global investment bank in London, stumbled across a grainy video clip that would change his life. It featured David Belle, the French founder of parkour, leaping across rooftops with a fluidity and daring that captivated him. “If this guy can do this, then of course, I’m a human being, I have two arms, two legs, I bet I can do some of that,” Toorock recalls thinking. At the time, parkour was barely known outside a small circle of French traceurs (parkour practitioners). There were no YouTube tutorials, no slick documentaries just low-quality clips and French-language forums that weren’t exactly welcoming to curious outsiders.
Undeterred, Toorock dove in. He connected with a fledgling British group called Urban Freeflow, meeting them in parks to climb walls and vault benches. At 31, he was older than most of the young traceurs, but his enthusiasm was boundless. Parkour wasn’t just about flips or stunts; it was a philosophy of seeing obstacles as opportunities, of moving through the world with efficiency and creativity. For Toorock, who had spent years running from his own insecurities, parkour offered a way to stop running away and start moving forward.
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Founding American Parkour
When his job brought him back to the United States in 2004, Toorock was determined to share parkour with his home country. At the time, the discipline was virtually unknown in America. He launched American Parkour in 2005, creating one of the first organized parkour communities in the world. The website, a labor of love, became a hub for enthusiasts to connect, share tips, and learn about this radical new way of moving. “It was theirs, or so they felt,” he said of the French traceurs who initially resisted parkour’s spread. But Toorock saw its universal potential a practice that could belong to anyone willing to try.
In 2006, alongside friend Jesse Woody, Toorock opened Primal Fitness in Washington, D.C., the world’s first parkour gym. It was a bold move parkour was still seen as an underground activity, something kids did in backyards or abandoned lots. But Toorock envisioned a space where people of all ages could train safely, blending parkour with CrossFit . The gym, housed in an old firehouse, became a beacon for the growing parkour community. Toorock lived there for a decade, immersing himself in the movement he was building.
American Parkour wasn’t just a gym or a website ,it was a mission. Toorock founded the American Parkour Academies, expanding to Texas and Florida, and developed an instructor certification program to ensure safe, effective coaching. He also managed The Tribe, a performance team that showcased parkour’s artistry at events worldwide. His work earned him features in The New Yorker, The Washington Post, The New York Times, and ESPN Magazine, and appearances on CBS, NBC, BBC, and more. By 2010, parkour was no longer a niche curiosity it was a cultural phenomenon, and Toorock was at its forefront.
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A Philosophy of Play
For Toorock, parkour is more than a sport; it’s a way of life. “If there’s anyone that doesn’t luv to move, it’s because they’ve forgotten that they do,” he told The Washington Post in 2017. At 47, he wrote passionately about parkour’s accessibility, debunking the myth that it’s only for “ripped 18-year-old boys doing double flips.” He practiced what he preached, focusing on “stuff close to the ground, on speed and efficiency,” even as he aged. His annual birthday ritual hiking a mountain and running the last mile became a personal benchmark of resilience.
Toorock’s vision extended beyond elite athletes. He saw parkour as a tool for everyone, especially kids. In 2016, he achieved a milestone when American Parkour partnered with Washington, D.C., public schools to replace traditional gymnastics with parkour, meeting SHAPE America’s physical education standards in a way that was fun and engaging. “You can’t always keep kids safe… but you can teach kids how to be safe,” he told gym owners, emphasizing parkour’s ability to build confidence and physical literacy. Programs expanded to Baltimore County and Virginia, with Toorock’s team designing parkour kits for middle schools and summer camps.
He also championed parkour’s mental benefits. Overcoming a wall isn’t just physical it’s a metaphor for tackling life’s challenges. “Parkour is a discipline of training the body and mind by progressively overcoming physical obstacles,” he wrote, advocating for a unified definition that could make parkour as recognizable as yoga. His talks at events like the Art of Retreat, a parkour leadership gathering, focused on spreading this message, urging the community to present parkour as a practice of health and well-being.
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Beyond the Gym: A Diverse Legacy
Toorock’s background is as eclectic as his approach to movement. Before parkour, he worked as a theater designer, engineer, IT specialist, and even a NASDAQ-registered stockbroker in 2001. He’s lived abroad, traveled extensively, and brought a worldly perspective to his work. This diversity shines through in his side ventures public speaking, life coaching, and designing parkour spaces, including “the Quad” for World Chase Tag, a professional competition seen . In 2022, he served as the “Ready Man” at the World Chase Tag Championship in London, his voice booming “Athletes Ready!” to kick off each match.
His influence reaches far. Toorock interviewed David Belle for American Parkour, strengthening ties with parkour’s roots. He co-founded the United States Parkour Association, shaping the discipline’s governance. And he’s never shied away from tough conversations, addressing parkour’s commercialization and the need to preserve its spirit amid growing popularity. “I want to change the world by helping people be more happy, healthy, and productive through the power of play,” he declares on his website, a mantra that drives his every endeavor.
The Man Behind the Movement
Now in his 50s, Mark Toorock shows no signs of slowing down. Based in Fort Valley, Virginia, he continues to coach, design, and advocate. His personal life reflects his philosophy never stop playing. Whether he’s vaulting a rail, mentoring a young traceur, or speaking to a room of educators, Toorock embodies the idea that obstacles are just invitations to move differently.
His legacy is in the thousands of kids who’ve found confidence through parkour, the gyms that bear his curriculum, and the community he built from a single spark in London. Mark Toorock didn’t just bring parkour to America he made it a movement that transcends borders, ages, and expectations. As he likes to say, “Be Useful. If I don’t try to make the world a better place, who will?” For Toorock, that’s not just a question it’s a call to action, answered with every jump, climb, and step.
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