Paris 2024 Olympics – Raygun, Australia’s Famous Breakdancer

The Paris Olympics have had many memorable moments, but few compared to Rachael Gunn’s breakdancing routine which earned her a score of zero points and an early elimination.

Who is She?

Rachael Gunn, widely known as “Raygun,” is a pioneering Australian breakdancer who represented her country at the Paris 2024 Olympics. Her journey in the world of breaking has been both challenging and inspiring to women.

Initially, Gunn faced significant hurdles as one of the few women in a male-dominated sport. Despite these obstacles, she emerged as Australia’s top female breakdancer, earning her place at the historic Paris Olympics where breaking debuted this year.

Breaking Boundaries

In Paris, Gunn’s performance, unfortunately, did not yield the results she hoped for, as she was eliminated in the round-robin stage without scoring any points. This led to some criticism, particularly on social media. However, Gunn and her supporters, including Australian Olympic team members, have defended her, emphasizing her role in breaking barriers and her contribution to the sport.

Beyond her breakdancing career, Gunn leads a dual life as an academic, working as an interdisciplinary researcher and lecturer at Macquarie University. Balancing her academic responsibilities with the rigorous demands of Olympic-level training can only have been a considerable challenge.

In the Paris Olympics closing ceremony, Gunn’s performance was celebrated for its energy and cultural significance, proudly wearing an Australian tracksuit with Indigenous designs – a choice that she defended passionately against criticism.

Her performance in her event saw her mimicking a kangaroo and a snake among other bizarre moves, scored zero points in the inaugural women’s breakdancing competition. It has since emerged that Gunn is fully immersed in all things ‘breaking’, after picking up the sport in 2008 and enrolling in a PhD in 2011.

As part of her studies, she did a thesis on the sport titled: “Deterritorializing gender in Sydney’s breakdancing scene: a B-girl’s experience of B-boying.”

Cultural Impact

Even celebrities like British singer, Adele, have posted about enjoying her amusing performance. However, an Olympic judge said of her display: ‘I feel personally very sorry. The breaking and hip-hop community definitely stands behind her. She was just trying to bring something new, something original, and something that represents her country.”

Raygun’s antics have led to questions over how she even qualified for the event at the Oceania Championships in October 2023. Nevertheless, expect videos of her performance to circulate for years to come on social media channels.

She certainly made a wave and put women’s breakdancing on the map. Maybe that was her only goal all along. There are more important things in the world sometimes than the score you achieve!