Australian B-Girl Raygun 'devastated' by online hate after Olympic performance
CBC
Rachael Gunn, also known as B-Girl Raygun, spoke out Thursday after several whirlwind days of memes, accusations and conspiracy theories surrounding her performance at the 2024 Paris Olympics.
In a video post on Instagram, Gunn thanked her supporters but said the hate she has received online "has, frankly, been pretty devastating."
"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," she said.
Gunn's Olympic performance went viral for all the wrong reasons.
Memes mocking the Australian dancer's breaking moves at the Games have flooded the internet since she lost all three of her round-robin battles by a combined score of 54-0, in a performance remembered for her "kangaroo hop" and other moves that perplexed audiences.
But the online discourse surrounding Gunn, also known as B-Girl Raygun, has shifted into something more malicious.
Social media users, confused by how Gunn made her way to the world stage, have made accusations that she rigged the competition to qualify for the Olympics, that she intentionally bombed her performance and that she's the reason breaking won't be returning to the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles — even though that decision was made before the 2024 Games started.
Gunn's critics have falsely claimed that she and Samuel Free, her coach and husband, founded the organization that ran the Australian competition where Gunn qualified for the Olympics.
This theory has gained plenty of traction online. A change.org petition demanding a public apology for alleged "unethical" behaviour by Gunn and Australian Olympic boss Anna Meares had more than 57,000 signatures as of Thursday.
"Rachel [sic] Gunn, who set up her own governing body for breakdancing, has manipulated the selection process to her own advantage," the petition claims.
The petition calls for a "full investigation" into the selection process, an audit of Gunn's "business dealings" and a public apology from Gunn and Meares for "misleading the Australian public and attempting to gaslight the public and undermining the efforts of genuine athletes."
The Australian Olympic Committee (AOC) has written to change.org demanding it take the petition down. "It amounts to bullying and harassment and is defamatory," CEO Matt Carroll said in a statement.
The AOC also clarified that Gunn and Free hold no positions with AusBreaking or DanceSport Australia in any capacity, and that Meares was not involved in the qualifying event or the nomination of athletes.
Following her performance Saturday, Gunn told media that she tried to be creative, because she couldn't compete athletically with her younger rivals.
