Australian breaker Raygun praised for her ‘courage’ and ‘character’ after viral performances at the Paris Olympics

Rachael Gunn arrived in Paris as a competitive breaker excited to make her Olympic debut. She leaves an internet sensation, her performances viewed by million across social media.

Rachael Gunn arrived in Paris as a competitive breaker excited to make her Olympic debut. She leaves an internet sensation, her performances viewed by millions across social media. Gunn – also known as B-girl Raygun, or simply Raygun – is a 36-year-old university lecturer from Sydney, Australia, who balances her day job with her breakdance career, competing at events around the globe. Recently, that took her all the way to the Paris Olympics, where 32 athletes – known as B-boys and B-girls – were competing at the Games for the first time. And at the Place de la Concorde on Saturday, Raygun, kitted out in the green and gold tracksuit of Australia, showcased some of her moves across three round-robin battles: a kangaroo hop, a backwards roll and various contortions with her body while lying or crawling on the floor. She failed to register a point in her battles against USA’s Logistx, France’s Syssy and Lithuania’s Nicka, losing 18-0 on each occasion. It’s fair to say that subsequent commentary on the internet wasn’t entirely polite about Raygun’s performances. One user on X, formerly known as Twitter, called her routines “hilariously ridiculous,” while another questioned how she had made it this far. Even singer Adele took time out of her concert in Munich to question whether the whole thing was a “joke,” adding that it was “the best thing that’s happened in the Olympics.”