The 2024 Olympic Games, like many of its predecessors, has seen its share of controversies. From debates over gender fairness and sexist remarks in the case of boxer Imane Khelif, to a spying scandal and concerns over water quality, the Paris Olympics have made news for many of the wrong reasons.
The polemic over the gymnastics bronze medal still remains unsolved even after the Olympic Games are over, and perhaps will remain so for as long as a few years to come. The medal was first awarded to Romanian gymnast Ana Barbosu, then as a result of a scoring appeal it was shifted from Barbosu to Jordan Chiles, only for it to be reversed later, causing outrage among fans and athletes alike.
Now another polemic has broken out in the world of breaking. B-Girl Raygun’s performance at the Paris 2024 Olympics went viral, but not for good reasons. The Australian breaker’s unconventional routine, which included a ‘kangaroo hop,’ failed to score any points with the judges, sparking a wave of online ridicule and speculation as to how she ever made it to the most exalted sports competition in the world. She has now become infamous as the only participant in the Olympics to have ever scored a zero.
Amidst this, legendary B-Boy Crazy Legs (Richard Colon) called for an ‘investigation’ into how Raygun made it to such a prestigious stage in the first place. “There should be an investigation into why the World DanceSport Federation allowed this to happen,” Colon said.
Rachael “Raygun” Gunn’s performance has been called, “stunningly awkward” and included floor-writhing, goofy freezes and the now often-cited “kangaroo hop.” She has even been spoofed by comedian Rachel Dratch on the Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon.
Crazy Legs has taken offense at the 36-year-old Australian college professor’s performance, saying, “Breaking comes from a culture of people who have lived a difficult life — so when we see something like that we’re like, ‘Yo, is that a joke?’”.
Referring to Raygun’s “academic” and “interpretive” style, Crazy Legs questioned, “Maybe it’s a hobby for her — and that’s fine. Do your thing, girl, have fun.” However, hinting at cultural appropriation, he added, “But you’re on the wrong stage. You can’t just go in there and disrupt a whole culture of people,” he said.
The dispute threatens to turn into a political disagreement as well, as even high profile figures like the Australian Prime Minister and the head judge of the Olympic breaking competition are defending her creative approach. They emphasized that breaking is about originality and representing one’s country or region, and implied that no one particular ethnic group “owns” it.
Like some of the other controversies that have erupted in the 2024 Games, the incident has sparked a broader conversation about the nature of competitive breaking and what it means to perform on an international stage. It raises questions about the criteria for Olympic qualification and the balance between technical skill and creative expression. And in this case, it has led to questions about whether break dancing is worthy of inclusion in the Olympics Games.
