Australia's Olympic chief is defending breakdancer Rachael Gunn, aka Raygun, from "disappointing" attacks following her performance at the 2024 Paris Olympics.
#OlympicBreakdancing #Austraila
#OlympicBreakdancing #Austraila
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00:00Australia's Olympic chief defends breakdancer Rachel Gunn.
00:05After Rachel, who also goes by her B-girl name Reagan,
00:09went viral August 9th for losing all three of her round-robin battles
00:13by a combined score of 54-0,
00:16Australia's chief to mission, Anna Mayers, is standing by the athlete.
00:21Telling reporters August 10th,
00:23I love Rachel, and I think that what has occurred on social media
00:27with trolls and keyboard warriors and taking those comments
00:30and giving them airtime has been really disappointing.
00:34Anna, a former Olympic cyclist for Australia, continues,
00:38Reagan is an absolutely loved member of this Olympic team.
00:42She has represented the Olympic team, the Olympic spirit,
00:45with great enthusiasm, and I absolutely love her courage.
00:49I love her character, and I feel very disappointed for her
00:53that she has come under the attack that she has.
00:56Anna ends her message by detailing alleged gender discrimination
01:00Rachel has faced in the sport, saying,
01:03In 2008, she was locked in a room crying,
01:06being involved in a male-dominated sport as the only woman,
01:10and it took great courage for her to continue on and fight for her opportunity
01:14to participate in a sport that she loved.
01:17She is the best breakdancer female that we have for Australia.
01:22Rachel, who serves as the lone female breakdancer
01:25on Australia's Olympic team, left many spectators amused
01:28but also confused by her unconventional dance moves,
01:32the most eye-catching one being dubbed the kangaroo,
01:35which involved Rachel laying on her side, reaching for her toes,
01:39and flipping over.
01:41According to her LinkedIn page, the 36-year-old breakdancer
01:44is also a university lecturer with a PhD in cultural studies
01:49interested in the cultural politics of breaking.
01:52Rachel defended her performance while speaking with reporters
01:55after failing to earn a single point in the three rounds of competition, saying,
01:59All my moves are original. Creativity is really important to me.
02:04I go out there and I show my artistry.
02:07Sometimes it speaks to the judges and sometimes it doesn't.
02:10I do my thing and it represents art.
02:13That is what it's all about.