The Neurodivergent Genius Who Invented Formula 1 For Marbles

Marble racing has become a viral sport on YouTube, drawing millions of fans to intense marble league tournaments, high-speed marble runs, and oddly satisfying competitions. Jelle’s Marble Runs is the world’s most popular marble racing channel, created by Jelle Bakker, an autistic YouTuber whose precision and creativity turned a childhood hobby into a global sensation. With detailed marble tracks, live-style commentary, and fan-favorite teams like the Savage Speeders and O’rangers, Jelle built a competitive league that rivals traditional sports in passion and fandom. This is the story of how one creator on the autism spectrum redefined online sports through marbles, community, and viral spectacle. We are so proud to announce that this wonderful story won the 2025 Webby Award for Best Sports Video in the Video & Film category. Thank you for voting for us! 🎉 00:00 Marbula One 00:29 Glass and Furious 00:42 The brothers behind marble racing 01:34 Meet the Team 02:25 Growing up with marbles 02:57 Building the first marble runs 03:25 Going viral 03:55 Creative approaches to building races 04:55 The die-hard marble fans 5:54 Dion's favourite marble 6:25 Coming up with new ideas 6:50 Jelle's success Subscribe to Jelle's Marble Runs:    / @jellesmarbleruns   Follow on Instagram: @jellesmarbles Follow on Facebook: @jelleknikkers Got a story idea for us? Shoot us an email at pitch [at] GreatBigStory [dot] com 📧 Get exclusive GBS items from our online store 🛒 👉 https://shop.greatbigstory.com/ SUBSCRIBE: https://buff.ly/41yqVHF NOTIFICATIONS: Make sure you enable the 🔔 to get notified about our latest video publishes. SUPPORT THE CHANNEL:   / greatbigstory   Follow us on Instagram:   / greatbigstory   Check us out on TikTok:   / greatbigstory   Join us on Snapchat:   / 18450982-0867-49c9-b4ac-2a534d1c86aa   Follow us on Facebook:   / greatbigstory   Give us a shout on Twitter:   / greatbigstory   Sign up to our newsletter: https://greatbigstory.com/signup/ #marbles #racing #marblerun #marblerunrace