Inter-School Parkour Speed Competition Brings Schools Together in Salford

On Friday last week, the Project Z Academy was buzzing with energy as we hosted Manchester's first Inter-School Parkour Speed Competition, in collaboration with the School Sports Partnership in Salford, a full day of movement, learning, and friendly competition for schools across Salford.

Throughout the day, we welcomed 10 schools and dozens of students, who each took part in a 1.5-hour introduction to parkour and speed workshop led by our coaches Tom Redfern and Ben Fielding, before putting their new skills to the test on our purpose-built speed course.

A High-Energy Start – Morning Workshops

The morning session saw students from Beech Street Primary, St Mary’s Primary, Holy Family Primary, St Philip’s Primary, and The Friars Primary take to the academy floor.

From the very start, the atmosphere was full of excitement. Students picked up new movements incredibly quickly, throwing themselves into the workshop with enthusiasm and confidence. After learning the fundamental skills needed to complete the course, they were given just 10 minutes of practice to get ready for the real challenge.

Each competitor had one timed run. Missing a checkpoint added a 3-second penalty, while missing two or more resulted in a DNF. It wasn’t just about speed, but focus and precision too.

The standard was incredibly high, but the three students who claimed the podium tore our course to pieces:

• 1st Place: Conor (St Mary’s Primary) – 13.99s

• 2nd Place: Riley (Beech Street Primary) – 15.82s

• 3rd Place: Reyon (Holy Family Primary) – 16.06s

Points were awarded based on placements and combined into school totals. By the end of the morning, Beech Street Primary came out on top with an impressive 59 points, finishing a clear 11 points ahead of Holy Family.

Focus and Determination – Afternoon Session

In the afternoon, we welcomed Christ the King Primary, Light Oaks Primary, Cadishead Primary, Riverview Primary, and Lewis Street Primary.

While the morning brought high energy and excitement, the afternoon session had a slightly different feel: focused, determined, and full of intent. The students showed real commitment to improving throughout the workshop, and it paid off when it came time to compete.

After their practice runs, the students stepped up to the course and delivered some fantastic performances:

• 1st Place: Grayson (Riverview Primary) – 14.97s

• 2nd Place: Abdullah (Lewis Street Primary) – 15.16s

• 3rd Place: Nasser (Lewis Street Primary) – 16.53s

When all scores were combined, it was Lewis Street Primary who claimed the team victory with 53 points, just edging out Light Oaks Primary on 50 in a very close finish.

Overall Champions Across the Whole Day

With both groups tackling the exact same course, we couldn’t resist combining the results to crown overall champions across the entire event.

Looking at the fastest times of the day:

• 1st Overall: Conor (St Mary’s Primary) – 13.99s

• 2nd Overall: Grayson (Riverview Primary) – 14.97s

• 3rd Overall: Abdullah (Lewis Street Primary) – 15.16s

When recalculating school scores across all participants, Beech Street Primary emerged as the overall team champions, finishing with a huge 118 points.

The School Sports Partnership in Salford Values Awards

Of course Tom loves a good spreadsheet and a deep dive into the numbers, but the day wasn’t just about times and rankings. We also recognised a number of students who embodied the core values championed by the School Sport Partnership. Qualities that matter just as much as speed on the course.

The Respect Award went to Reyon and Elle of Holy Family Primary, who consistently showed kindness and encouragement towards both coaches and fellow competitors. Two Self Belief Awards were presented, one to Athalia of St Philip’s Primary for overcoming a mental block and committing to a jump she initially found daunting, and another to Abdullah of Lewis Street Primary for pushing himself to attempt, and conquer, our highest wall run. The Determination Award was shared by Aisha of The Friars Primary, who stayed composed after early mistakes to complete her speed run, and Sianndra of Cadishead Primary, who kept battling through challenging sections of the course until she succeeded. Finally, the Passion Award went to George and Alfie of Christ the King Primary, whose enthusiasm, energy, and creativity stood out throughout the entire workshop.

These moments are what parkour is all about. Not just moving fast, but growing in confidence, resilience, and character along the way.

A Fantastic Day for Parkour in Salford

The entire team at Project Z Academy would like to say a huge congratulations to every student who took part. The effort, attitude, and willingness to try something new were incredible to see throughout the day.

A big thank you also goes to all the teachers who gave up their time to bring students along and support them. Events like this simply don’t happen without that commitment.

And of course, a massive thank you to School Sport Partnership, especially Elaine and Dean, for helping bring schools across Salford together for such a unique and exciting experience. We’re looking forward to working together on future projects to bring parkour and its many benefits to even more students across the area.