Australia’s Olympic committee chair Anna Mears has hit back at criticism of Australia’s Olympic female breakdancer, claiming attacks on her much-criticised performance were driven by “sexism”.
Mears’ attack came after a performance by Australian breakdancer Rachel Gunn was the subject of ridicule on social media.
“I love Rachel,” Mears said, “and I think it’s really unfortunate that the actions that have taken place on social media by trolls and keyboard warriors and that those comments have been picked up and given airtime.”
Rachel Gunn, Australian breakdancer with a PhD in Cultural Movement pic.twitter.com/FQ0eZTeqsR
— Crown Down Under (@clowndownunder) August 10, 2024
Mears continued with an unintentionally stigmatizing portrayal of Dunn’s breakdancing background, adding: “For those of you who don’t know Rachel’s story, in 2008 she locked herself in a room and cried after being the only woman competing in a male-dominated sport.”
Australia’s Olympic chief has described Dunn’s inclusion in Australia’s breakdancing team as a victory for feminism.
“It took a lot of courage for her to keep fighting for the opportunity to play the sport she loves, to win the Olympic qualifiers and come to Paris,” she exclaimed.
“She’s Australia’s best female breakdancer,” Mears added, noting that Australia sent no women to the Olympics in 1924 but sent 256 women this year.
Gunn, 36, has been criticised on social media for having a “PhD in breakdancing” and being a university professor of “cultural politics”. Macquarie University Based in Sydney, Australia, her research interests include “breaking, street dance, hip hop culture, youth culture/scenes, the construction of the dance body, the politics of gender and gender performance, ethnography, and methodological dynamics between theory and practice.”
Either way, Gunn has been the target of a lot of online trolls since his appearance in Paris.
Bunny hop, I haven’t laughed this much in a long time. Thank you Australia.
I still don’t know how she got to the Olympics or who put her in the Olympics, but thank you.
If you’ve never explored the world of Australian breakdancing, you’re really missing out. #Olympics2024 pic.twitter.com/IjgPYUIsxe
— BravoUniversitea (@BrvoUniversitea) August 10, 2024
This Australian breakdancer has a PhD in Cultural Movement and is apparently a world-class breakdancer. I think what she meant was that her parents were very wealthy and she has never worked in her life. pic.twitter.com/ZkP1RCvlhu
— ‘ (@KCOnTheRadio) August 10, 2024
That’s not breakdancing. It’s a medical emergency…
— Mandy (@mandirising) August 10, 2024
Why does this Australian breakdancer look as if he was spotted in the crowd and told, “You can dance next”? #Paris2024 #Olympic #GoingForGold
— Cedric (@Official_C_E_D) August 9, 2024
Australian Olympic breakdancers were crazy pic.twitter.com/OeEsxssu8D
— Safety James (@scampdastard) August 10, 2024
It’s not sexism. She was so bad. It’s like one YouTube video put her on the world stage. How did she get voted Australia’s best breakdancer??
— SituationAwake (@KGovocek) August 11, 2024
When you read every article about the Australian breakdancer Rae Gunn, she’s either a troll or a white woman in academia explaining racism to black people, anti-Semitism to Jews, and homophobia to gays and lesbians. #Olympic
— Is your mic on? ✡️Mayim (@is_themicon) August 11, 2024
Follow Warner Todd Huston on Facebook: facebook.com/Warner.Todd.Hustonor the Society of Truth Warner Todd Houston One
