Breakdancer Rachael “Raygun” Gunn has addressed the backlash she received after her performance at the 2024 Summer Olympics, where breakdancing made its debut as an Olympic sport.
Raygun took to Instagram on Thursday (Aug. 15) to defend her approach to competing in Olympic breaking. She expressed how upsetting the negative reactions have been.
“I didn't realize that would open the door to so much hate,” she began. “Which is frankly been pretty devastating. While I went out there and I had fun, I did take it very seriously. I worked my butt off preparing for the Olympics and I gave my all, truly.”
Raygun added: “I'm honored to have been part of the Australian Olympic team and to be part of breaking's Olympic debut.”
Despite her explanation, fans continued to criticize her in the comments. One person wrote, “There needs to be an investigation into how you got on the Olympics.”
Regarding the “allegations” and supposed “misinformation” circulating, Raygun directed fans to read the official statement from the Australian breaking team.
“We condemn the global online harassment and bullying of Raygun,” they stated in her defense. “The pressure to perform on the Olympic stage is immense, especially against the opponents in her particular group. We stand in solidarity with Raygun.”
The World DanceSport Federation also backed Gunn, offering mental health support from an officer.
“We offered [the] support of our safeguarding officer,” the organization's general secretary said. “We are aware of what has happened, especially on social media, and definitely we should put the safety of the athlete, in this case, mental safety in first place. She has us as a federation supporting her.”
Pop star Adele voiced her support for Raygun, saying the breaking routine made her “very, very happy.”
“I can't work out if it was a joke, but either way it has made me very, very happy. And me and my friends have been shitting ourselves laughing for nearly 24 hours. But I just wanted to know if you've seen it,” she commented at a recent show.
However, Dr. Dre seemed to criticize Raygun without naming her directly. “I did not like that. It's so many great breakdancers, I don't know why they had this particular person doing that,” he told Entertainment Tonight. “It was funny, I got some laughs out of it, but what the f—? There are incredible breakdancers out right now — I don't know how that happened.”
Watch Raygun's response video below.
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Last update on 2024-11-07 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API