From the South Side to the Olympics, double Dutch gets serious

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Mari Velazquez, Kearia McMiller (jumping) and Jayla Thomas of Chicago's Jumping Juniors perform during a freestyle event of the AfroJump double Dutch competition at the DuSable Black History Museum and Education Center, 740 E. 56th Pl., Saturday, March 25, 2023.

"Slow down, turn the rope, double Dutch, pop ups, mumbles," chanted a group of 18 young girls wearing lime green and pink track suits as a similarly clad trio of girls — jump ropes in hand— took the stage at the DuSable Black History Museum and Education Center.

Last Saturday, March 25, the girls were at DuSable, 740 E. 56th Pl.,representing Chicago's Jumping Juniors double Dutch club at AfroJump, a national double Dutch competition. Organized by the National Association of Double Dutch Organizations (NADDO), the competition hosted 10 teams from eight states, bringing in a total of more than 70 athletes — 21 of which were Jumping Juniors.

Double Dutch, in contrast to single rope jumping, involves two ropes rotating in opposite directions in a rhythmic manner. Two players turn the rope as one or more players jump, sometimes performing tricks that involve gymnastics or dancing.

The athletes competed in two categories of jumps: coordination drills and dash; and freestyle. These categories were in turn subdivided according to the experience levels of jumpers. The coordination drills and dash were displays of discipline, timing, stamina and speed, whereas the freestyle involved displays of creative physicality and costumes.

The event also served as the forum for an announcement by Shaun Hamilton, president of the International Jump Rope Union (IJRU). NADDO and its athletes had just become eligible to participate in the process that leads to "the ultimate goal: the Olympics."

Charisma Stamp, Alayah Garnder and Aydn Little of the Elizabeth, New Jersey Jump Kids Double Dutch team perform during a freestyle event of the Afro Jump Double Dutch competition at the DuSable Black History Museum and Education Center, 740 E. 56th Pl., Saturday, March 25, 2023.

According to a brief history of double Dutch written by David Walker, a former New York City police detective who founded the modern competitive sport in 1973, double Dutch owes its origins to the Dutch settlers who settled New Amsterdam (now New York City).

Though it had long been played by kids in New York City, the sport's popularity took off after Walker and his detective partner, Ulysses Williams, organized the first double Dutch competition in 1974. The game soon became a staple of outdoor play, principally among young Black girls in urban areas.

But as the game grew internationally "it kind of dwindled away in our communities," said Laila Little-Omosawe, founder of NADDO and its predecessor, the International Double Dutch League (IDDL).

"We're pretty much playing catch up," said Little-Omosawe. "Because while we were dying out, other countries and other communities were building up and had a long term vision to become an Olympic sport."

Now we're trying to get back into the game and make sure that we're included in something that we started."

Hamilton, who won the world championship jumper title in 1999, stood before the crowd of athletes, coaches, judges and families at the DuSable and said, "Many of us in this room have heard about the Olympics and what it takes. Up until the last time I was in D.C. for this event, the athletes in this room were not eligible."

"I've got some great news for the folks in this room," he continued. "Due to the great work of your amazing leader (Little-Omosawe), you guys are now eligible."

In an interview with the Herald, Hamilton explained that double Dutch needs to clear numerous administrative hurdles to become an Olympic sport.

"In order for the sport to become an Olympic sport, it starts at the international federation level," said Hamilton. "And that is what IJRU is. It is the sole international governing body for the entire sport of jump rope, which includes single rope, double Dutch, everything."

That governing body, Hamilton explained, is then evaluated by a group of international organizations including the International Olympic Committee.

"Everyone's got to get into alignment," said Hamilton. He explained the relationships between the various jump rope organizations in the United States, including the American Jump Rope Federation (which includes single rope jumping) and NADDO, and their relationships with the Olympic recognition effort.

In keeping with that need for alignment, NADDO made its public debut at the DuSable's AfroJump competition with a renaming ceremony, leaving the IDDL name behind and with it the implication that the organization was an umbrella international organization.

Judges, coaches and attendees do a little double Dutch during a break in the Afro Jump Double Dutch competition at the DuSable Black History Museum and Education Center, 740 E. 56th Pl., on Saturday, March 25, 2023

"As a kid, I used to watch my older sister jump," said Jumping Juniors co-founder Lolita Scott as she explained the origin of Jumping Juniors. "It was like pretty much all you could do back in the day."

At age 5, Scott learned how to jump from her older sister. From then on, she said, "it was something that we just pretty much did every day, sunup to sundown if it's the weekend, because it was like the most fun thing to do that was outside with our friends."

In 2019, Scott and her friend Paulette Jones, the other Jumping Juniors co-founder, learned about a double Dutch club for jumpers over 40.

"We were jumping with 40+ Double Dutch every weekend," said Scott. "We were just having so much fun; it just brought back all our childhood memories."

Then we were both telling each other, ‘wow, we're out here jumping every weekend and our own kids don't know how to jump.’And so we decided to start teaching young girls how to jump."

They started the Junior Jumpers in the spring of 2020, shortly after the pandemic started. "The kids didn't have anything to do; they were always on their phones, you know, nothing but electronics, so we was like, 'we need to get them out of the house and get them you know, to be active instead of in the house all day,'" said Scott.

That spring, they held a six-week outdoor camp to teach young girls how to jump.

"We were blessed with nothing but good weather," said Scott. "We didn't have anything but the outdoors and the jump ropes. And that's how we got started."

The DuSable event was the second major competition for the Jumping Juniors. Last year, the group went to Washington, D.C. to compete in the IDDL championships.

"It's so exciting to see how they are so excited," said Scott recounting a phone call she had received recently from two of her jumpers. "(They were saying) ‘we need to build up our stamina; we need to do this; we need to do that.’"

And then, Scott added with a chuckle and a sigh, "And I am thinking, ‘we are on break right now.’"

"They have so many ideas they want to be working on, practicing on," said Scott. "To see them eager and looking forward to what's next is great. I'm like, 'I'm with you girls,' so I may set up something to meet with them before camp starts."

Jumping Juniors originated in Euclid Park in the Washington Heights neighborhood on the far South Side. It is now active in three Chicago parks and runs a six week long camp.

Learn more about Jumping Juniors and its camp here.

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I don't doubt that they competitive association mentioned in the article was important, but it can't be fully credited with the spread of double Dutch across the country. My classmates in elementary school in Hyde Park were doing double Dutch at recess years before it was founded.

I think the history that is cited doesn't account for the spread of Double Dutch across the US, and certainly to Chicago and Hyde Park. I graduated from elementary school in Hyde Park in 1976, and all through elementary school my classmates did Double Dutch in the playground at the Lab School. Double Dutch was on the south side of Chicago well before the competitive organization mentioned in the article was founded, and that organization cannot be the cause behind DD being widespread across the country.

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Updated: June 6, 2023 @ 7:16 am

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