Lausanne's most popular spots were swarmed as practitioners from all over Europe joined Sébastien Foucan and David Belle at the first Loz' Jam on 18 and 19 July. The event was hosted by the recently-formed Parkour Lausanne.
"Before you can get support from other organisations, first you must be recognised. And before you can be recognised, first you have to be seen," said Sébastien Foucan. "Most of the institutions of sport are based in Lausanne. The United Nations Office of Sport for Development and Peace is just down the road in Geneva. It's good for us to show organisations like that just what we can do. And it's good to see the first coverage of parkour and freerunning in the local media as a result of our actions."
Participants included representatives of parkour, freerunning and l'art du déplacement groups which have secured recognition in their own countries. Points of debate included competition and also plans to help make parkour, freerunning and l'art du déplacement a greater part of humanitarian work. Natalia Ivanova, of Street Expressions in Denmark explained: "I saw with my own eyes how parkour and freerunning can help with humanitarian objectives, when I helped create workshops in the Philippines after last year's typhoon. There is so much work we can do in this area. It warmed my heart to see how much support there is in the community for projects like this."
"Thanks to Parkour Lausanne for their hospitality," said Sébastien Foucan. "The community spirit was great, with many of the local hosts opening their rooms, apartments and houses to visitors. We must always think about this special sense of community as parkour and freerunning continue to grow."