IIt’s no easy task for an athlete to make their presence known amid the plethora of events taking place at the Paris Olympic Games, but one star from Australia may have taken the cake during the sport’s Olympic debut.
Rachael Gunn, aka “Raygun,” 36, went viral on Friday after a series of clips sharing her interesting moves prompted viewers to take to social media to share their thoughts and funny memes.
Some spectators questioned how she got to the Olympic stage. “It’s surprising that Australia’s Raygun is the best circuit breaker you guys have,” wrote a user on X. “How did she get this far?!” Others couldn’t help but express their amazement at his acrobatic moves and footwork. “Insane respect, got an all-expenses paid trip to Paris plus all the free gear and is forever an Olympian. She cooked a lot here, unfortunately,” said another.
Gunn was ranked Australia’s top B-girl, the colloquial term for breaker, in 2020 and 2021, but not make the list in 2024. She won the Oceania Breaking Championships in 2023. While some moves require specific technique, judges also consider individuality and style in their scores. Gunn lost all three battles against his opponents and did not advance in the Games. Gunn secured 0 points, meaning no judge thought she did a better job than her competitor.
read more: A complete guide to Breaking, the newest sport at the Olympics
The athlete wore a dark green and gold tracksuit – Australia’s national colors – and a cap matching her Olympic performance, while her competitors wore more casual, street-style clothing. In several videos, Gunn was seen waving her hands in a circular motion and dragging herself across the floor, drawing comparisons to children put some. Many have pointed out Gunn’s “kangaroo movement,” where she is seen jumping from side to side with her wrists close to her abdomen, which appears to be an imitation of Australia’s national animal.
“There hasn’t been such a dominant Olympic performance since Usain Bolt’s 100m dash in Beijing in 2008. Honestly, the moment Raygun started his kangaroo movement, this competition was over! Give her the #breakdancing gold,” one user sarcastically written in X.
On Friday, the women entered the competition through individual battles between dancers in their pool. (The men will compete on Saturday.) The top two breakers from each group advance. There are a number of moves that players can perform, including windmills, freezes and six steps, according to the Olympics. Fifteen countries are participating in the breakout.
Break dancing originated in the Bronx, New York, in the 70s and has roots in hip-hop culture. International competitions in breaking – which is the sport’s official name despite greater familiarity with the term breakdance – began in the 1990s. After breaking was added to the Youth Olympic Games in 2018, the IOC decided it would see its debut wider Olympic Games in 2024.
Gunn obtained his PhD in Cultural Studies from Macquarie University in Sydney. She is a researcher who studies the “cultural politics of rupture”, via the university websiteeven leading to look for about how Australian breakers were reacting to the inclusion of breaking in the Olympics.
“It’s a great honor and a privilege to be, you know, one of sixteen women from around the world competing in breakbreaking’s debut at the Olympics,” Gunn said in a statement. Instagram post on Thursday. “I hope seeing breaking at the Olympics inspires a whole new generation of breakers.”
This story originally appeared on Time.com read the full story
