
Bab Ezzouar, Algiers – There are two steps to preparing to jump from the roof of one building to another. Step one: Measure the distance and practice landing on solid ground. Step two: Rehearse running up to the edge.
Bilal Ahmedali is training with two friends and fellow parkour athletes on the roof of an abandoned mall in the Bab Ezzouar neighbourhood of Algiers. The shopping complex’s west wing bends like a horseshoe with a five-metre gap between its ends, and a nine-metre drop to the red-tiled courtyard below.