Breaking will be making its debut at the upcoming Olympic Games in Paris.
Across the men’s and women’s competitions, 32 athletes will be in action – two of whom will be Australian.
The Sporting News takes a closer look at the duo representing the nation.
MORE: Full Australian Olympic squad for 2024
Paris Olympics: Who is representing Australia in breaking?
Rachael Gunn
Gunn, 36, is a born and bred Sydneysider.
While she has become well-known in breaking circles, Gunn also works as a researcher and teacher, integrating her passion for dance into her profession.
She holds a PhD in Cultural Studies and an honours degree in Contemporary Music – both from Macquarie University.
According to her university profile, her work is centred around "cultural theory, dance studies, popular music studies, media, and ethnography".
The Hornsby-born athlete currently teaches both undergraduate and postgraduate courses at Macquarie and is a member of the university’s Performance and Expertise Research Centre.
Known as ‘Raygun’ in competition, Gunn is the nation’s top-ranked female breaker.
Jeff Dunne
Dunne, 16, makes up the other half of Australia’s breaking team.
Known in competition as 'J-Attack', Dunne was born in the Phillipines before being adopted by an Australian family.
He now calls the NSW town of Casuarina home.
The teenager began break dancing as a seven year old, and was awarded a Sport Australia Hall of Fame scholarship in 2023.
How do you qualify for breaking at the Olympics?
With only 32 spots – 16 men and 16 women – up for grabs, only a select number of nations have representatives in breaking.
For Gunn and Dunne, they both booked their ticket by winning the Oceania Breaking Championships in Sydney late last year.
A few more athletes earned their spot via a qualifying series, although no Australians were successful.
How does breaking work? Rules and scoring
Gunn and Dunne will compete separately in Paris, with no team events taking place.
They will feature in the B-Girl and B-Boy divisions, respectively.
Judges will score solo battles based on six criteria:
- Creativity
- Personality
- Technique
- Variety
- Performativity
- Musicality
Technique, performativity and creativity grades make up 60 per cent of the total score, while variety, musicality and personality are worth 40 per cent.
