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Don't be surprised if, this weekend, you walk through the city centre and see dozens of rope jumpers. This is the 3rd International Urban Rope Jumping Tournament, which takes place on 29 and 30 August, with almost a hundred participants from various countries.
Everyone will have tried rope skipping as a child. It is a physical activity that is almost always associated with our childhood, due to its playful and fun nature, and one that can and should be continued into adulthood. This is the view of Paulo Vaz, better known as Robinho, a sports coach and rope skipping enthusiast. He was the mentor of the sport's meetings, which began in Porto, where he was born, in 2023.
‘I already jumped rope when I practised boxing,’ he says, ‘and, in the meantime, I realised that there was a community enthusiastic about the sport, but more in terms of tricks - not only in terms of physical exercise, but also in terms of the more playful and artistic side.’ It was then that he realised there was room to create a community on an informal platform, and so The High Jump, his brand, was born. From this platform, Robinho began to contact other jumpers – as rope jumpers are called – from around the world, and the movement grew.
“The first event was created with the specific aim of bringing together people who had started training and practising their moves at home. At the first event, we had 12 people; at the second, we had 26, and now, at our third, we will have around 90 people. It is, without a doubt, [significant] growth.”
Athletes (non-professionals) from countries such as England, France, Italy, the United States, Canada, and South Korea are participating in this meeting.
On Friday, the 29th, starting at 9:00 a.m., there will be a gathering of rope jumpers at Largo Amor de Perdição, in front of the Portuguese Centre of Photography, where they will remain until 12:30 p.m. Robinho assures us that ‘anyone who wants to join is welcome.’ Afterwards, they will ‘walk around the city jumping rope,’ stopping at Ribeira, and later going up to Serra do Pilar, where they will give some demonstrations. The gathering of rope jumpers will be repeated on Saturday morning, with demonstrations at Largo Amor de Perdição.
2nd International Rope Skipping Tournament
Winners of the 2024 International Rope Skipping Tournament
On Saturday, 30th, at 4 pm, the Fábrica Vasco da Gama in Matosinhos will host rope jumping battles, free to participate and open to the public, in which a jury will evaluate ‘who jumps best’.
Considering that in this sport each athlete ‘develops their own style, their own technique,’ the jury evaluates elements such as ‘the originality and speed of the movements,’ and there is also a part called ‘response,’ which counts towards the score: ‘since it will be one-on-one, a kind of battle, if one jumper makes a certain type of movement and the other decides to counter, that is, if they make the same movement, perfecting it, they receive points,’ he explains.
Robinho also mentions that The High Jump is developing projects in social neighbourhoods, secondary schools and fitness centres to show both young people and adults the benefits and art of jump rope.
The sports coach, who is also a jump rope trainer, assures us that the benefits ‘are many’. ‘It is a sport best known for burning calories quickly, which is linked to weight loss; it is a very active cardio exercise, involving many muscles. It contributes to improving [motor] balance and coordination, in terms of physical fitness; and, in terms of mental fitness, it greatly relieves stress.’
© DR
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