Could You Be The Next YoYo World Champion?

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I was amazed when I first saw this! I thought I'd seen enough yoyo tricks in my time but this guy is full of surprises! He lifts this fun game up to the level of art form and makes it look effortless.

For the first 3 minutes he explains his passion for the yoyo and it is a real inspiration to listen to, however my jaw dropped at his first trick and I was glued to the screen until it was finished. A truly beautiful display and well worth a watch.Find out more about Black here and see more of Blacks yoyo tricks here.

History of Yo-Yo's

Yoyo's have been around in one form or another for thousands of years, the exact origin is debatable as there are illustrations of people holding what appears to be yo-yo's on all sorts of ancient artifacts, however it is uncertain if it was intended to be used as a toy. It is possible it was invented in numerous places at numerous times, but it was probably derived from the Diabolo's in China which date back to at least 1000bc. The popular design which we all recognise today, wasn't manufactured until the early 20th century in Santa Barbara, California. The first Yo-yo competitions were held in England in 1932 and won by Harvey Lowe who had bought his first Yo Yo just a year prior! I'm sure he would have been amazed at the level that it has been taken to today.

In the latter part of the 20th Century the Yo Yo got a new lease of life as it was popularised by many celebrities and expert trickster. Instruction videos were sold in their thousands and it became a staple for variety, talent and magician shows. On April, 12, 1985, a yellow yo yo joined 9 other toys on the space shuttle Discovery and became the first yo yo in space!

Today it doesn't seem like it's popularity is waning in the slightest, and since Black has made his act one of the highlights of the Cirque du Soleil I'm sure the Yo yo will continue going from strength to strength!

Can you do any Yo Yo tricks?

We'd love to see them! Leave us a link, in the comments box below, to your YouTube video of yourself preforming YoYo tricks and we will show case the best one here and on our facebook and twitter


 

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