Tricking is an ever changing, constantly evolving sport - but words have meanings, and titles are only true if they are in alignment with the historical development of the sport ! This is why such things should be handled with precision, care & honour.
Hi my name is David and I am a certified nerd on the topic of Tricking ! I authentic & invalidate titles at will !
Today my target is the concept of "World Championships" in Tricking, as we have several claimants .. so who is telling the truth?
In order to know, we must bust out the Magic Schoolbus and Mrs.Frizzle the situation by going back in time and understanding the history of the sport.
First let me start off by listing my personal criteria that I use to evaluate what I consider to be a "World Championship" calibur competition
( not to be confused with "World Class" which is an event that is above a National level competition, and is a potential contender for a World Championships. )
- How many countries are in attendance?
- Does the event contain the best known Judges & Battlers?
- Does the event have a large audience in attendance & online viewership?
- Does the event accurately display/market an individual's profile including the teams they affiliate with, their battle history & country of origin?
- Does the event have Symbols of Legitimacy in attendance?
- Does the event have a historical claim or immense positive contribution in establishing itself?
For some Tricking is a business, and it's not about ensuring that the substance of an event be true but that the event appears to be true if it's presented a certain way - and these tactics might work on the public who may not be aware of the history, and even investors/sponsors might be tricked by legal jargon & trending catch-phrases that are intended to hook people and get people to go along, but the entire point of a contest is that it's supposed to enable the highest truth of the sport to emerge. Sports Corruption is the hidden element that only experienced individuals can perceive that works to intentionally bend facts and the outcome of a contest in a fixed manner - there are people who intend to force an outcome, and not everyone in a position of authority intervenes to stop such forces from influencing a contest.
If we go back to the very origin of the sport, Tricking has trace-able roots to the North American Sports Karate Assocation (NASKA) & it's circuit of competitions, enabling a variation of traditional forms to be displayed in their own semi-free style manner called XKC or Xtreme Kicks Contests - these were the first ever Tricking Battles & to my knowledge, the video below is the first official release of one for the public.
NASKA & it's affiliated World Tour events
( Charlie Lee Nationals, Battle of Atlanta, US Open, etc )
XKC 2000 - Tricking's first showcase & by default,
Tricking World Championships
Something I would like to point out:
At this point in Tricking History, Tricking wasn't officially called Tricking, and, some of the best contributors around this time period, such as Sean Ellis aka Sesshoumaru, who were not privy to these calibur of events & so were not in attendance.
Given that this was the first rendition of a Tricking Battle, it's expected that it would not be as impressive as it is today ( 25 years later at the time of this article ).
However, there was (1) Tricker in particular that was unarguably the Symbol of Tricking.
At the time it may not have been clear, but I think people instinctively knew what is easily identifiable now when we look back.
He is the inventor of a Trick that was deemed the hardest kick to ever be done at that time.. a Trick he named "Snapuswipe", which existed in no martial art before him - becoming Tricking's most iconic Trick.
That man's name is ...
Steve Terada
Winner of various NASKA affiliated World Tour Competitions & Tricking Influencer
XKC Era 2000 ~ 2008
It's important to stress that my personal belief, speaking as an evaluator & Champion Tricking Battler myself, that being unique & inventive are necessary to set yourself apart and achieve the highest rank within your respective division.
You can be the exact same as everyone else, which makes it impossible to determine who #1 is,
but when you invent your own skills and break limits, it becomes easier to figure out who is the best.
A World Championship is host to a World Champion, and at this point in Tricking History, there were not too many options - it was almost exclusively for sports martial artists in the NASKA circuits .. however.. as Tricking made it's way onto the internet & as it formally become known as Tricking, and the term XKC was phased out, the first generation of backyard Trickers emerged, and communities formed all around the world.
The next World Championships naturally formed and as the XKC generation was coming to a close, the younger generation & the world came together to participate at the undisputed biggest and best battles happening at that time and so was the reign of Loopkicks, an organization that became synonymous with Tricking during that time period.
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