Australian breakdancer Raygun rated world number one

Despite widely mocked performance in Paris, controversial Olympian is deemed best on the planet

The Australian breakdancer whose controversial performance during the Olympic Games earned her global mockery and a score of zero has been ranked world number one in her sport.
Rachael Gunn, known as “Raygun”, whose Olympics routine included a so-called kangaroo dance, has won the backing of the World Dance Sport Federation (WDSF), which placed her at the top of its latest international rankings.
The WDSF explained that ranking points for athletes were based on their top four performances for the previous 12 months.
The Olympic Games and two qualifying events were not included in its calculations due to what it called “limited-athlete quotas.”
The WDSF said its announcement aimed to “address concerns” and “provide clarity” about its rankings system.
“Until WDSF ranking events recommence later this year, therefore the world rankings as they currently stand should be interpreted in conjunction with results from recent global breaking competitions for a more accurate reflection of the global competitive landscape,” it added.
Can’t stop watching this kangaroo dance in the breaking 🦘🇦🇺#Paris2024 #Olympics #BBCOlympics pic.twitter.com/2LpWjfc5hW
Raygun, a 37-year-old university lecturer from Sydney, found herself world number one after scoring 1,000 points in the WDSF Oceania Championship last October. However, her success will be short-lived as she will fall off the current rankings at the end of this coming October.
Despite her new-found fame, Raygun has hinted she will be stepping away from competing for a while. In a recent interview on Australian television, she admitted she did not want to be in the spotlight again.
“I don’t think I’ll be competing for a while. Not wanting to be in the spotlight, breaking, competing,” she told The Project TV programme. “You know, it was my medicine and then it turned into my source of stress.”
While her unorthodox breakdance routine at the Olympics was widely ridiculed, it did win her some unlikely fans. She was spotted dining with Boy George, and Sir Richard Branson asked her to dance with him.
While the Sydney academic’s performance has divided the breakdancing community, it has also raised questions about its merits as an Olympic sport.
Although it made its debut in Paris, it is not scheduled to be included in the next Olympic Games in Los Angeles in 2028.
Zack Slusser, the vice president of Breaking for Gold USA, called into question the WDSF’s standing in the breaking community. He told the Associated Press that the federation had failed to organise events that would “contribute to creating an accurate world ranking”.
He claimed that breakers only performed in WDSF competitions to gain points to qualify for the Olympics and that they had “no incentive” to continue taking part in the federation’s events after Paris.