Published: Tuesday, 16th March, 2010 8:45am

Know the Score about Freerunning

Young people in Ayrshire are being offered the chance to have a go at 'freerunning' as part of a series of events taking place across the country.

The activity - made famous in the James Bond movie Casino Royale - marks the latest phase of the Scottish Government's Know the Score campaign, which raises awareness amongst Scotland's young people of the dangers of using cocaine.

A freerunning event in association with Know the Score will be held in Kilmarnock at New Laigh Kirk in John Dickie Street on Friday March 19 at 2.10pm. Additional freerunning events will take place in Glasgow, Dumfries, Dundee, Aberdeen, Edinburgh and Inverness over the coming weeks.

At each of these events, 30 young Scots aged 16 to 25 will get the chance to try out freerunning (also known as parkour) free of charge. It is a non-competitive sport that combines physical strength and endurance with critical thinking and is about moving through any environment regardless of obstacles.

They will also get the chance to see a freerunning demonstration by two of Scotland's premier instructors, Chris Grant and Scott Houston. Both trained with Sebastien Foucan - the French founder of freerunning who appeared in the opening scenes of Casino Royale with Brit actor Daniel Craig.

The 2010 Know the Score campaign, which was launched in January, is aimed at informing young people about the dangers of using cocaine and empowering them to make positive choices in their lives. The increasing popularity of freerunning demonstrates one such activity which many young people are enjoying.

To take advantage of the 30 places available, young people in Ayrshire are being encouraged to register now at http://knowthescore.info/talk/freerunningwithkts to reserve their place. Further information is also available by visiting the campaign's Facebook page at http://facebook.com/freerunningwithknowthescore.