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Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese defends Olympic breakdancer Rachel “Raegan” Gunn amid criticism

Broadcast United News Desk
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese defends Olympic breakdancer Rachel “Raegan” Gunn amid criticism

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“It’s an Australian tradition to try. She’s already tried to represent our country and that’s a good thing.

“Whether they won a gold medal or just tried their best, that’s all we ask. Participation is what really matters.”

Breakdancing has been removed from the 2028 Los Angeles Olympicsbut there is no guarantee it will return to Brisbane in 2032 or later.

B-Girl Raygun of Team Australia competes as Syssy of Team France looks on during the B-Girls round-robin tournament. Photo/Getty Images
B-Girl Raygun of Team Australia competes as Syssy of Team France looks on during the B-Girls round-robin tournament. Photo/Getty Images

Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan said she enjoyed watching the sport and said Regan was already a champion because she had been chosen to represent their country on the world stage.

“To quote Taylor (Swift), let the haters hate and let’s just celebrate the success of our Olympians,” she said in Melbourne.

Delegation leader Anna Meares similarly backed Gunn and condemned the comments of “trolls and keyboard warriors”.

She said: “I love her character but I am very disappointed for her that she has been attacked like this.”

Gunn lost all three round-robin matches by a combined score of 54-0, and admitted afterward that athletically she could not match the skills and spins of her younger opponent.

“What I wanted to do was come here and do something new, different, creative — that’s my strength, my creativity,” she said.

Gunn published a doctoral dissertation titled Gender Deterritorialization in Sydney’s Breakdance Scene: A B-girl’s B-boying Experience.

The paper questions why there are so few female participants in male-dominated sports, but also describes the sport as “a space that embraces difference.”

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