Phil (Wizard) Kim's breaking gold helped introduce sport to the world, mentor says

A gold medal win by Canadian Philip Kim at the Paris Olympics in breaking has introduced the world to the sport and its culture that is all about peace, love and unity, his former coaches say.

Kim, who competes as B-Boy Phil Wizard, took the first-ever Olympic gold medal in men's breaking in Paris by defeating French hometown favourite Dany Dann in Saturday's final.

Breaking is a mix of dance, gymnastics, acrobatics, head-spinning balance and a dose of bravado, all to a bass-thumping music beat. The urban dance style traces its roots to New York City during the 1970s.

Kim began his dance journey in Vancouver, and his former coach, Jheric Hizon, said watching Kim create his magic and seeing the Canadian flag raised on the global stage in Paris had been an incredible experience.

"He was really on point that day," Hizon said of the gold-medal match. "Philip does a lot of freestyle in his dance, so he was using some of his signature moves earlier on and then throughout the whole competition, he was just very relaxed and was having a lot of fun as well."

WATCH | Vancouver's Phil Kim captures historic gold in Olympic breaking:

As Kim's mentor who first introduced hip hop to him when he was 10 years old, Hizon said seeing him applying everything he had learned to become the 27-year-old "Phil Wizard" was a triumph.

"Whoever watched the games, especially the younger kids, I'm sure they are inspired, and the ones who are breaking now, I'm sure they will practise even more, even harder, and just maybe take this dance just a little bit more seriously," said Hizon.

Breaking, also known as breakdancing, made its Olympic debut at the Paris Games, drawing huge audiences.

But it may be the sport's last appearance as it's not part of the program at the Los Angeles Games in 2028.

She said she believes Kim's gold medal will keep the breaking scene alive and vibrant.

"Coming to the Olympics brought it to the world," she said.

"So, everybody knows what it's all about and people are starting to go like, 'Wow, that's the most amazing thing to watch. What a great sport, is it a dance?' It's a sport, it's a dance, it's art."

Perel-Panar said Kim's goal was to show people how breaking can be used to improve mental health, and give people hope and a better life.