Do you remember playing tag as a kid? Yes? Well, how about this, have you heard of “Parkour”?
Well, Chase Tag is professional competitive tag. It’s an actual sport where teams are match against each other in a game of tag through an obstacle course. The person chasing is called a “Chaser” and the person that’s being tagged is called the “Evader”. Each round last for 20 seconds, if the chaser gets the tagged, he moves on to the next round as the evader.
Although, this is just one of the rules to chase tag.
So, how did this school yard game become a hyper intensive worldwide sport?
Enter, World Chase Tag
World Chase Tag (WCT) was founded in 2011 by Christian and Damien Devaux. They decided to standardize and created the rules to the game of chase tag after one of the games between Christian and his son in their back garden.
The two Devaux brothers went on to create a modular obstacle course where they can rearrange, add, and subtract away specific elements that will allow them to adjust the difficulty of the obstacle course. The obstacle course of this indoor arena is know in the community as the “Quad”.
They even tweak the quad to accommodate kids as a way for them to get active and serve as a way to get them into fitness and sports, since a game of tag is simple and known to every kid.
Rules in Depth
As I’ve previously mentioned, the game of chase tag consists of the chaser trying to tag an evader through the quad.
There are actually 5 different ways to play chase tag according to WCT:
- Ultimate Tag (Multiplayer)
- Team Matchplay
- Singles Matchplay
- Single Sudden Death Chase Off
- Flight Club – Singles Winner Stays On
Depending on which of the games are played, there are specific rules that dictates the play, but all tags needs to be tagged by hands.
Ultimate Tag (Multiplayer)
Four athletes per match with each match structured with 4 x 40 second round. Every round the chaser will switch out. The team with the lowest accumulated tag wins.
Team Matchplay
According to official rules, each team is allowed up to 5 players, with each round having 2 x 20 second chases.
Once the chaser tags the evader, the evader is out and the new person joining becomes the new chaser. If the evader successfully evade the chaser within the duration of 20 seconds, the team gets a point.
Neither team will score a point if the match ends in a draw. The team with the most number of points based on predetermined number of rounds wins.
Singles Matchplay
In the singles matchplay, two athletes are pinned up against each other where the first athlete to accumulate 10 points and is two points ahead of the competition wins.
Every round have two periods where the chaser and the evaders take turns to be tag by switch roles after each period. Each period is 20 seconds long or until the chaser tags the evader.
Singles Sudden Death Chase Off
When you hear the phrase “sudden death”, you know only one person will walk away. In Singles Sudden Death Chase Off, two athletes will alternate the roles of chaser and evader. The chase off is divided in rounds with each round having 2 x 20 seconds chase. The person that can evade the longest wins and the loser is dropped from the competition.
In case of a tie, additional rounds are played until there’s a winner.
Flight Club
In a Singles Winner-Stays-On scenario, the match can be formulated with 2+ athletes with the numbers of match predetermined. Like other plays, every round is 20 seconds long or however long it takes the chaser to tag the evader. The chaser is awarded nothing for tagging only the evader scores. They score 1 point for every successful evasion. The athlete that has the most points or won the most rounds wins.
Disclaimer: All the the rules and game plays mentioned above is Trademark of World Chase Tag, I neither claim or own anything of the description under Rules in Depth.
(Also, the thumbnail for this post is the Property of World Chase Tag.) – I own nothing
For more information, you can read more about the rules at World Chase Tag‘s Official Website.
Parkour Athletes
As you’ve probably guessed at this point, in order to catch a mouse in a metal jungle, you’ll need to have some skills.
The quad is all too familiar to the parkour community, a group of athletes that’s known for superhuman speed, strength, and jumps.
They’re known to push the human body to the extreme as well as being the spider monkeys of the urban cities. They’re fearless and capable of outmaneuvering any obstacles moving or not. Did I mention they are wicked fast, mobile, and fluid? Well, they’re! Just Youtube “Parkour” and see some of the stuff they do, phew!
My favorite group of parkour athletes is called Storror, seven incredible athletes that hails from Great Britain. They do free-running and parkour all over the world.
As a little personal favor, please go support their channel on Youtube as they risk their lives to capture incredible footage of their journey, link’s right here.
Training to be a WCT Champ
While I may not be the leading authority for parkour, I can help point you to who can help train you, especially since everyone is stuck at home at the moment.
Ronnie Shalvis is a parkour / free-running athlete who also happens to be a stunts man.
Here’s a little video he put together for you to do some parkour training at home:
As with all forms of training, please exercise with caution and be aware of your surroundings.
To reduce the number of injuries, please consult with parkour professionals for advice and try to start off training with some soft padding.
Since flexibility is so crucial to parkour, daily stretching exercise are recommend to stretch out the ligaments.
There’s a great research done by Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) that went in depth on flexibility and stretches. Links below:
One of the best place to practice is at the public playground. There are plenty of platforms varying in heights as well as tight spaces that can help you train on squeezing through small areas quickly.
Open parks is another good practice ground, but because it lacks the padding of the playground, I would suggest you bring along a friend or a training buddy to ensure each others’ safety.
Chase Tag FAQs
Are there recommended shoes for parkour?
When it comes down to shoes, you’ll need to select them based on these criteria:
- Lightweight
- Grip strength on surfaces
- Shock absorbent
- Comfort
- Durability
I would place extra emphasis on the grip strength and shock absorbent when selecting your shoes.
With that said here are some recommendations to consider:
- ASICS Gel Venture Series
- Merrell Trail Glove Series
- TakeFlight Stealth Series
- Nike Free RN Series
- Onitsuka Tiger Ultimate Series
Estimated price range of these shoes hovers between $95 – $100 (maybe a little bit over plus tax)
How can I join WCT?
World Chase Tag is always looking for new athletes.
Please visit WCT Official Site for Instruction.
You’ll need to record yourself doing chase tag and submit a form.
Can you make money with profession chase tag?
As of now, there are no paid professional chasers or evaders. They might get publicity or get paid to make guest appearance, but no one is making a living from winning championships.
Is chase tag an Olympic Sports?
No, not yet, but WCT and the community is pushing to make chase tag a more globally accepted sport.
Are chase tag meant to be played indoors or outdoors?
Generally, the quad could be setup indoors or outdoors, but if you watch any of the live or the recorded footage, the chase tag will generally take place indoors.
Final Thoughts on Chase Tag
A game of tag is elementary and the existence of professional tag proves that there’s still a kid in all of us. We love the thrill of the chase as well the thrill of the hunt.
Allow me to be the first person to tag you. Now, please tag this post and share it with anyone that may be interested.
Reminder, you can find the official rules and watch the previous championships on World Chase Tag‘s official website.