Australian Breakdancer Rachel Raygunn's Viral Performance Is Probably The Greatest Moment In Paris Olympics
Some disasters might actually be a good thing - Rachel Gunn experiences the sort of viral embarrassment most young people crave today to get famous.
Look, I’m not going to trash talk someone that’s managed to make it to the Olympic stage. Like everyone else, I’m just surprised the routine was not vetted in advance to spare Rachel Gunn the sort of viral embarrassment most young people crave today to get famous.
Worse, Australians are also losing their mind. So, I really feel for Rachel.
While I won’t trash her, I will question her thinking as well as the thinking of others that thought it was a good idea to have her compete on the world stage at 36. Did no one close to her watch the other competitors or, let’s say, footage of what the best break dancers are doing today?
I’m aware there was a 51 year old dude from Turkey that won silver for sharpshooting. But all he had to do was to stand there!
I was baffled when I watched clips of her routine the first time. I truly thought it was a joke, and that it was part of the entertainment prior to the competition itself. Maybe an amateur throwdown. You know, how the circus brings out the clowns and works a funny bit before the main performance. Here’s about 30 seconds of her segment to give you an idea, in case you haven’t seen it.
Here are some facts to keep in mind and that I’ve had to keep reminding myself when seeing clips of Raygunn online.
She’s 36 - Far older than most of the B-Boys and B-Girls she competed against. Try doing some of the acrobatic and power moves that “Breakers” do in your 30s and your muscles have no memory…. good luck.
Gunn, who holds a PhD in Cultural Studies, is a lecturer, and she is not training like her younger competitors are training.
She started breakdancing in her late 20s, early 30s! This should have set off some alarms. Break dancers start at a young age and they grow and layer their moves. There’s no way Gunn would have had enough time to compound her moves in such a short period of time.
She was coached by her husband, Samuel Free, who I keep reading is a break dancer, but I can’t find any decent footage of his breakdancing. Also, who coaches their spouse?
Some of Gunn’s critics are having a field day. Some of the harshest criticism is coming from fellow Australians. Here’s one from a parody site. Although this is not true, “Breaking” will likely return to the Olympics in the early 2030s.
The Olympic planners, with their less than impressive opening ceremony, almost managed to keep the spotlight on their activism that offended many people, and also turned many people off of the Olympics.
However, Rachel Raygunn came bouncing in with her kangaroo routine and stole the spotlight! I cannot go online right now and not have some footage of Gunn’s routing pop up in my feed.
I’m actually glad this happened, so I stop seeing clips of the Hawk Tuah girl popping up. Thank you for that, Rachel Raygunn!
What are your thoughts on Raygunn’s performance? Are you laughing about it or do you believe it should have never happened?
Ps. One of the best and funniest videos I’ve seen about this viral performance is from
- you can watch it here, it’s hilarious.
I was chatting to a few people about how Olympic athletes don't get paid for competing in the games, that it's all down to them to get the money to get there, possibly helped by grants and sponsors. If you win a medal, your own country gives you a bonus... Maybe... If you don't get to that level, your probably out of pocket but money isn't what the games are about, it's about prestige and honor and all that stuff you can't pay the bills with. The only other way to fame is to be bad... So bad it stands out to this level. I doubt any casual fan can name a gold medalist from the 1988 winter Olympics, I'm sure we all know Eddie Edwards and the Jamaican Bob Sled team though. I hope she milks this fame for all the money she can get.