By John Johnston
Enquirer staff writer

Marcus Taylor jumps rope better than anyone in the world.

The 18-year-old from can back flip, front flip, and handspring his way through, over and under a twirling rope, one he whips into an invisible, whirring blur. He does it all with seemingly effortless grace and a smile worthy of a toothpaste commercial.

In July, Marcus earned the title of all-around champion at the International Rope Skipping Federation World Championships in Brisbane, Australia. The senior at School for Creative and Performing Arts accomplished it with a combination of strength, speed, agility and endurance. And something else:

His coach, Chris Emerson.

"I couldn't do it without her," Marcus says.

Theirs is a story of perseverance, hard work and dreams, some realized, some still unfulfilled. It's the story of a special bond between a young athlete from North Avondale and his 51-year-old coach from Green Township.

It began 11 years ago when Emerson, the physical education teacher at North Avondale Montessori School, saw the first-grader jumping rope. "I remember saying, 'This kid has more rhythm in his baby finger than half the kids in the school. He's a natural,' " she says.

She didn't see much of him again until he was in fifth grade, when he joined Ropin' Rockets, the jump-rope team Emerson had formed.

His involvement almost was short-lived. When Marcus failed to show up one day, Emerson went looking for him. She found his mother, who was angry about her son's poor report card.

Grades weren't Debra Taylor's only concern. She is 46, and a single mother. Marcus, her youngest child, has four brothers and four sisters. She wanted her son to play sports that offered the chance of a college scholarship.

Jumping rope? "I looked at it like it was a girl's thing," she says. "But I saw he was excited, him and the coach. It was two against one."

Debra allowed her son to continue jumping, if he kept up his grades. It was good motivation. "He got into his school work," she says.

Travel opportunities

Indeed, Taylor not only enjoys jumping, he loves traveling to competitions, such as the U.S. Amateur Jump Rope Federation National Championships, held each year at Walt Disney World.

Individual jumpers compete in speed events, jumping as many times as possible in a prescribed time, and freestyle, in which tricks and fancy footwork come into play.

In 2000, when Marcus was in eighth grade, Emerson believed his freestyle routine would be good enough to place him among the top three jumpers nationally, regardless of age. First, he had to qualify at a regional competition in Indianapolis. That's where his coach discovered she'd made a horrible mistake: She had inadvertently left his name off an entry form.

Officials wouldn't let him compete in freestyle.

"I wanted to kill myself," Emerson says. "I was on my knees, begging - 'Please, this kid's worked so hard all year for this.' "

Emerson learned something about Marcus' character that day.

"He said, 'Ms. Emerson, it's OK. It takes the pressure off. I'll work harder at speed.' "

He qualified for the nationals in the speed event, and finished second that year.

Emerson knew she had a rising star. "It's kind of like having Tiger Woods on your jump-rope team," she says.

But she also knew that for Marcus to improve his freestyle, he needed to work gymnastics into his routine. So for Christmas 2000, she presented him with three months of paid-instruction at a West Side gym. She drove him every week. In no time, his flips were wowing parents.

At Nationals the following summer, Marcus earned a silver medal in freestyle, and he set records for triple-unders (three turns of the rope for each jump) and 1-minute speed jumping.

Since then, his list of achievements has grown, and the bond between coach and jumper has deepened.

To keep him in shape for the 2001 world championships (where he finished fourth overall), each day that summer Emerson took him to the pool where she teaches swimming. He learned the breaststroke, sidestroke, backstroke and butterfly. Emerson, mother of two grown children, took him on her family's vacation and persuaded him to try water skiing.

"This isn't for black people," he joked after many failed attempts.

But last summer, with Emerson and her husband watching, he tried again, and succeeded.

"The most exciting moment of my life," he says.

Both rope jumper and coach are big fans of American Idol. He calls her after the show airs to discuss the performances. When the touring show came to town, Emerson took him.

"She's spoiled me like crazy," Marcus says.

"She's like a second mom."

Marcus' real mother, Debra, says her son was hurting after her 1995 divorce.

"My kid could have been lost. But it was like the heavenly father sent us this angel, Chris. She took Marcus on her wing. I thank God for Chris."

Debra also says that in hindsight, she was wrong about jump rope. The sport has taught Marcus about respect and responsibility. She's proud of his accomplishments.

This year, after Marcus qualified for the world championships in Australia, Emerson told him the cost of the 11-day trip might prohibit her from accompanying him.

"If you don't go," he said, "I'm not going."

Paying for trips to competitions - airfare, hotels, meals - has always been an issue. For two years, until last September, Marcus' mother was laid off from her job.

The Bethesda Foundation, North Avondale Montessori's partner in education, has made donations. Taylor's school, SCPA, kicked in some funds this year. Emerson also scrapes together money through fund-raisers, but when there's a shortfall, it comes out of her pocket.

More than money, her biggest sacrifice has been time. Practices eat away at her evenings.

"I wouldn't put in the time if he wasn't such a hard worker," Emerson says.

They journeyed together to Australia, where Marcus competed against athletes from nine countries in four events, all weighted equally: freestyle, 30-second speed, 3-minute speed and triple-unders.

The rope he uses for his freestyle routine snapped during a warm-up. Marcus didn't flinch. He used a substitute rope, stiffer than he's accustomed to, and made only one mistake.

The gold medalist returned to North Avondale and was greeted with a banner: "Congratulations Marcus Taylor, World Champion."

His mother believes such an achievement is worthy of more recognition. Marcus, too, thinks aloud about the possibilities: A guest appearance on Oprah. A Nike commercial.

College is the goal

His coach envisions something more.

"My goal has always been to get to the point where he could win the gold medal, and then have something great on his resume," Emerson says. "And hopefully it'll lead to a scholarship."

He wants to go to college. He'd be the first in his family to do so.

Jump rope isn't a scholarship sport, but some schools offer aid to cheerleaders. Marcus thinks he could do that. And he sings and dances. He is, after all, a performer.

Says Emerson: "Maybe the right person will see him and say, 'This guy's got some talent.' "

And if that leads to a scholarship, the coach will jump for joy.

More about the team

In a typical year, Marcus Taylor and his Ropin' Rockets teammates perform for about 24 local schools. The jump-rope team has also performed at college basketball games, nursing homes and for community groups. Monetary donations are always appreciated. The team practices its routines in fall, with most performances beginning in January. For information, call coach Chris Emerson at 363-3936.

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E-mail jjohnston@enquirer.com