Australian breakdancer Rachel “Raegun” Gunn has hit back at critics who mocked her performance and uniform at the 2024 Paris Olympics.
The 36-year-old Gunn lost all three of his group matches in the inaugural Breakin’ tournament, losing to the United States, France and Lithuania, but he still garnered attention in France.
“I look forward to a similar level of scrutiny of what b-boys wear tomorrow,” Gunn wrote on Instagram on Friday.
The Olympian’s fierce response came after social media users mocked her green and yellow Australian Olympic tracksuit and cap, while her opponent opted for casual streetwear.
The International Olympic Committee allowed athletes to wear custom uniforms, but Submitted for review before the competition.
“Australia tricked B-Girl Raygun out with this sinfully ugly outfit. Looks like she’s going to ask if she wants fries too,” one X user said.
“Meanwhile, Japanese Twitter is bashing her for her outfit resembling the uniform of a Japanese delivery company, but she lost out on logistics,” added another user.
Gunn did not receive a single vote from the nine judges and was defeated 18-0 in each match.
Judges scored the breakers based on technique, vocabulary, execution, musicality and originality.
During the fight, Raegan bounced around the stage, stood on his head, and rolled on his shoulders.
She performed a move she called “the kangaroo,” a tribute to Australia’s national animal.
“Australia has set breakdancing back 40 years,” one X user wrote.
“For the rest of 2024, you’ll never laugh as hard as you did after watching Australian university professor Raegan “breakdance” with teenagers.
In addition to representing Australia at the Olympics, Gunn is a lecturer at Macquarie University in Sydney and an interdisciplinary and practitioner researcher interested in the cultural politics of breaking.
According to the school, “her work is grounded in cultural theory, dance studies, popular music studies, media and ethnography.”
She holds a PhD in Cultural Studies and a BA in Contemporary Music.
Gunn embraced her breaking style and shared her quotes on social media.
“Don’t be afraid to be different, go out there and express yourself. Who knows where it will take you,” she said.
She defended her performance, saying it was a display of her own creativity.
“All my moves are original,” she told reporters after her performance.
“There was no way I could beat them with the dynamic, powerful movements that they are known for, so I wanted to do something different, I wanted to be artistic and creative. How many times in your lifetime do you get a chance to do that on an international stage?” she told reporters.
“I’ve always been the underdog and I wanted to make my mark in a different way.”
Breaking makes its Olympic debut on Friday, with “b-boys” competing starting Saturday, but the event will not return to the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.
Sporting leaders believe funding issues will prevent it being included in the Brisbane 2032 Games line-up. According to KIIITV.
“It was a miracle we were in Paris in the first place,” Zach Slusser, vice president of Breaking for Gold USA and USA Dance, told the outlet.
With post wire
