Breaking emerged as a new category at this year’s Paris Olympics 2024, with the intention of its inclusion being to engage and “connect with the young generation”, according to the International Olympic Committee’s President Thomas Bach.
Though the sport isn’t set to be on the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics program, it’s safe to say that this effort has successfully engaged TikTok, with the category making for several major viral moments, including the introduction of the internet to Australian breakdancer Raygun.
Raygun, AKA Rachael Gunn, caught people’s attention at this year’s Olympics for her alternative dance moves that included everything from the sprinkler to perhaps her most divisive move – the kangaroo hop.
But who is Raygun and how did she come to compete? Here’s everything to know about the Australian breakdancer who has achieved icon status despite scoring 0 at the Games.
Ezra Shaw
Who is Raygun?
Best known by her stage name Raygun, 36-year-old Rachael Gunn competed at this year’s Olympics in breaking on behalf of Australia.
While her abstract style of breaking divided opinion online, there’s a lot more to Gunn’s story.
Born in 1987, when she’s not dancing Raygun is an academic whose research centres on the origin of breaking culture.
With a prior background in jazz and ballroom dancing, Raygun first took up breakdancing in her twenties through the 2010s before taking time to focus on her PhD in cultural studies. However, Raygun continued breaking over this time with the support of her fellow breakdancer husband.
Though breaking won’t appear at the 2028 Games, Raygun is hopeful that the category will return when her country is set to host the 2032 Olympics.
Gunn qualified to compete in the 2024 Olympics at the WDSF Oceania Breaking Championships, with her deeper knowledge of the roots of breaking no doubt helping her along the way.